Never Say Neverland
by ElleMZ
Summary: While in Neverland, The Jolly Roger come across Belle and Fiona who may be able to help them find and rescue Henry. Regina and Snow discover Rose Red is alive. (Part of the Lines We Cross Series; OC/Rose Red) Disclaimer: I don't own the characters. Just having some fictional fun w/ OUAT [Rumbelle, Snowing, and eventual HookedQueen]
1. Off the Port Bow

**A/N:**

**Since Season 3 won't start for a few more months, I'm messing around with the idea of Regina having a daughter, Rose Red, and how that would play out over the course of the series so far. ****Doing my best to see if I can keep everything fitting within canon as much as possible as a personal writing challenge. This is the 5th story in the series. ****While you don't have to read all the other stories, I think Lines We Cross is one story that is incredibly helpful with understanding this one. **

**Thanks for all the PMs and reviews given. I enjoy your thoughts and feedback!**

**Storybrooke - The Wishing Well**

Belle was eager to go; she had been apart from Rumpelstiltskin long enough. Double checking her bag, she confirmed that she had the notebook she had created that would helpfully help The Jolly Roger crew find Henry. That precious information was tucked inside the deepest compartment. She had packed lightly, unlike her traveling companion who had a huge duffel bag that seemed to be filled to the brim. However that didn't seem to put Fiona's mind at ease, seemed a bit distracted and her brows conveyed that she was worrying about something. Belle checked on her. "What's wrong Fiona? Do you think you can do this?"

Biting her lip, the young woman put on a brave face. "Yeah, I'm fine." She did some breathing exercises to help slow down her heart beating. She practically felt the organ punching against her chest with each beat. Double checking, that she had what she needed for the third time, she began the process she had recently learned.

Her mind tried to focus on finding The Jolly Roger. As she concentrated, Belle noticed her friend's irises fading. Suddenly she felt rough winds and started smelling salt from the sea. Fiona continued her efforts and finally saw a ship. She felt as if she were watching it from above and was close enough to see who was on it. Mary Margaret was talking to a blond woman while Rumpelstiltskin was examining a large map. His hand was hovering over a spot and he called something out. That's when Fiona noticed Regina walking over towards him and her stomach got into knots. Forgetting The Blue Fairy's instructions to merely focus on the destination, she felt trepidation and her anxiety took over.

Suddenly she opened her eyes and noticed that she was in water, completely dark with salt stinging her eyes. Her duffel bag was quickly falling down and taking her with it. She tried to let go of it, but she had no control over her body. As she continue to sink, she blacked out.

**At Sea in Neverland - 8 hours later**

Emma had to admit that watching the sunset on The Jolly Roger was one of the most beautiful sights she had ever seen. She only wished Henry could watch it with her; he would've loved sailing again on the pirate ship for sure. Unfortunately she wasn't here for the scenery she was her to rescue her boy. Her heart broke when Greg and Tamara snatched him right after she and Regina reset the diamond trigger. Now she banded with her family and former enemies to bring henry back home.

The trip had been taking a toll on everyone on the ship. While Captain Hook had a beautiful ship, the limited space everyone was bumping into each other constantly. There was no real privacy. Almost immediately after they used the last magic bean to open a portal, Rumpelstiltskin and Regina were complaining about having their own rooms. With only 3 guest cabins, the logical course in her mind would've been to split it fairly evenly - her parents in one room, she and Regina in another, and Rumpelstiltskin in the back (no one really wanted to bunk with him).

But that's not what happened. Regina, being her usual prissy self, refused to budge on having a roommate, so her parents nobly suggested that she join them in a cabin and allow the other guests to have the spots just to keep the peace. If she wasn't on a mission to get her son back then Emma would've quit right then and there. However there were bigger things to think about.

As the night crept up, she looked around to see what everyone was doing. For the first time this week, all seemed quiet - no fighting or bickering among them. She immediately noticed that Mr. Gold was nowhere to be seen, which was probably why they had some peace. The older man had a way of provoking others, especially Captain Hook and Regina. Speaking of which, she saw Hook giving orders to his crew from the helm.

Her parents were together by the stern of the ship, holding hands and whispering. They looked like a couple of high school sweethearts. As if he sensed her watching, David turned and gave Emma a smile. She gingerly waved her hand. It was still a bit weird to have her parents be about the same age as her. They were navigating uncharted waters. Emma laughed at her last thought. *I can't believe I made a boat analogy on a pirate ship, how ridiculous* then again, was it really all that strange considering what she had been through in the last year or so?

She noticed Regina was on the opposite side from her (port side?) staring out into the water, her black trench coat buttoned up all the way to protect her from the winds. Emma had a feeling that the woman was also thinking about Henry. For pretty much most of the trip, the brunette woman had fought hard to avoid contact with the others as much as possible. While n one denied her heroic efforts that helped save their home in Storybrooke, Regina wasn't making it any easier for people to get to know her. It seemed like every time someone (like Emma or her mother) reached out to her, she lashed out. According to Regina's own words she was there to get her son back, nothing more.

Looking again at her, Emma saw that Regina was now squinting, as if she was trying to push her eyes' limits to see something in the distance. Hook noticed it too and started turning the ship towards whatever she saw. Walking over to the older woman, Emma searched to find what she was looking for. It was a light, barely visible, but it was getting bigger as they got closer.

"It's a fire." Regina noted.

Emma agreed, " I thought we were alone out here. Isn't that why we're taking this route?" Indeed the crew was trying to find a way to inconspicuously search for Henry. The sea and wildlife were quite rough around here, but it also made it a great spot to travel in. It looked like someone may have had the same idea, but somehow failed. It appeared that they set up a fire for both warmth and rescue.

Hook pulled out his spyglass to try and get a better view of the area. He grimaced and signaled that they halt their approach.

Not knowing why he made that order, Emma and Regina came up at the helm.

"What is it?" The blond asked. Hook was a pirate, but he would't leave someone stranded. At least that's what Emma thought.

The captain handed over the telescope to her. "Come see for yourself." Emma checked it out; it was impossible to make out faces, but she could see 2 people stuck on the shore. One was a woman trying to flag them by waving her arms frantically while the other body was lying still on the ground. It didn't look well. " What are you waiting for? They obviously need help!"Emma exclaimed.

David and Mary made it to the rest of the group while Regina snatched the spy glass from the blond sheriff to do her own survey.

"It may be a trap. I don't see any wreckage from a ship around where they are. How did they get there?" Regina carefully observed.

Hook was happy that someone else agreed with his assessment. "Aye, it looks a bit suspicious to me. Could be a trap set by the Lost Boys."

"Then why is it a woman jumping up and down?" Emma countered.

"Don't be be fooled Sheriff Swan, those 'boys' are very crafty and could make a convincing costume."

Mary Margaret wasn't so sure. With one of the bodies lying still, her gut told her this was real. "I'll go in a row boat to check it out myself. " David quickly inserted himself into his wife's plans. "I'll go as backup in case it is a trap. " Regina rolled her eyes at how naive the couple were. No doubt they'd rescue every stray cat if give the chance, she thought.

It was no skin off the captain's back if they wanted to take the risk. "Suit yourselves." Hook pointed them to a life boat they could use.

As the rowboat approached the shore, David and Mary Margaret were finally able to make out the words the woman was yelling.

"Help! My friend needs a doctor. " The voice sounded familiar, but neither one of them could place it.

Mary Margaret jumped out first and ran to the woman. "Help is here. You're safe."

"Oh Mary Margaret, it's you!" The brunette exclaimed and as the fire's light illuminated the area around her, Mary Margaret instantly identified her. "Belle! What are you doing here?!"

"We were trying to reach you. The Blue Fairy had some information about Neverland that could hopefully help you find and rescue Henry. But my friend was injured during the journey; she needs a doctor badly. Can you help us?" Belle gathered a couple of bags.

David ran up from behind. "Of course, let me carry your friend." He rolled the unconscious woman over just a bit so he could get a better grip on her. As he did, his wife exhaled sharply. "Fiona?!" Mary Margaret was staring at a long dead woman from Storybrooke.

**A/N: Thank you carriemarie78 for helping me out on this story! **


	2. Lost and Found

**Neverland - The Jolly Roger**

The news of Belle and Fiona got everyone on the ship excited for one reason or another. When Gold found out, he practically ran to meet his paramour. Seeing the Crocodile in such a good mood put Captain Hook in a bad one, so he remained at the helm while his passengers tended to the wounded woman. They had taken Fiona to a cubby of a room that served as the ship's med bay.

Since the doctor had no experience handling a case like this, he deferred to Rumpelstiltskin after he stabilized the brunette. The mature man attended to Ms. Kyle while a captive audience watched. None more interested than the former mayor.

Regina couldn't help but stare at the unconscious woman laying on the table, trying to confirm her identity. Fiona was currently covered under a thick brown blanket wearing some dry clothes they had on the ship, but Regina remembered that when they brought her to the ship that had been wearing dark blue pants, probably jeans, brown boots that went up to her knees,and a beige tunic like top, similar to what Belle was wearing.

Once again, she looked at the woman's face. This time she could see that the woman aged since the last time she saw her; Fiona now looked like she was the same age as Emma and Mary Margaret._ How is this even possible?_ She wondered, trying to solve the mystery, but missing too many pieces.

Even though she appeared to be cool and detached to most of the others in the room, Regina's mind and heart were anything but calm. She tried to sort through her incompatible emotions. She was immensely happy to see Fiona alive, but considering that she attended her funeral years ago, she had doubts as to the nature of this unexpected return.

"Is she alive?" Emma asked, breaking several people's intensely private thoughts. The deputy was bothered by the fact that the woman in front of them was deathly pale and she couldn't see her breathing from her angle. The blond looked around the room and was surprised to see both her mother and Regina wearing the same panicked expression on their faces.

Rumple checked Fiona's vitals again. "Yes, but barely. I imagine she's going to need some time to recuperate." Truth was he couldn't really do much once he healed some of the cuts and bruises she got from being pushed by the waves against the shore. It appeared as if her body was put through an enormous strain that had just about exceeded her limit. From his past dealings, he knew that those who were untrained with magic often harmed themselves.

Belle let out an audible sigh. "Thank goodness." She was truly concerned for her traveling companion's safety. They hadn't known each other for long, but they had became fast friends while working on getting Storybrooke settled in the wake of Snow's family's departure.

Now that they knew that the former deputy was going to make it, the eclectic group focused on the other pressing questions on their minds. Rumple, naturally, started by turning to his soul mate. "Belle, how did you two get here?"

Traveling between worlds was extremely complicated and quite rare. Even in the Enchanted Forest with magic, only a handful of people could travel and it was only between other worlds with magic. It had taken him centuries to carefully craft a powerful enough curse to bring them to Storybrooke so he could find his son Bae. They themselves had to use the last magic bean to open a portal to get into Neverland.

As far as everyone on the ship knew, it was a one way trip, but perhaps they could all go home after all if Belle had the key.

The blue eyed brunette looked at her friend. "It was Fiona who did it. The Blue Fairy had information about Neverland that she thought would help you rescue Henry." Belle pulled out her thick notebook out of her bag to show the others. "She helped Fiona to focus and use her ability to get us here. We unfortunately landed in the middle of the sea and the waves brought us to the shore where you found us." It was a disorienting trip to say the least, but she was happy that they both made it.

Mr. Gold was truly puzzled at how this was possible. As part of his preparation for the curse, he made it his mission to recognize all portal jumpers in their realm and Fiona wasn't on that list. The only one who had great potential was Jefferson and even he had limitations that couldn't help Rumple. "She did this? How did she use her ability? Did you use a talisman?" The best jumpers used objects to focus their gifts on when they traveled, like Jefferson and his hat. Rumple was afraid that the women may have lost it while at sea.

"She didn't have anything." Belle was confused by the question. "She did it herself."

They couldn't afford to be mistaken, so he asked again. "Are you sure The Blue Fairy didn't help out in any other way? A portal perhaps?"

"No, it was Fiona who did it." She saw Rumple's face take on a pensive look and started to worry. "Why? What does it matter?"

Reviewing out loud what he knew, he explained. "It matters because it means she used her own body to jump. Her abilities are innate." He looked at the woman on the bed and shook his head. There was no way she could harness such power and remain hidden from him for this long. "The jump almost killed her which tells me two things - one, she is completely untrained and two, she probably won't be strong enough to get us back home once we have Henry." He couldn't hide his disappointment. They were so close to having an out from this dreadful place.

Regina added her two cents to the conversation. "It also tells us that she's special. A gift like this certainly unique." She stepped closer to Fiona and touched her hand, just to see if she was real. Recalling her time with the deputy in Storybrooke, she knew there was no way for the woman to have picked up those gifts in a land without magic. She had to have the gift long before the curse was enacted. "Perhaps she's a child of True Love" she suggested.

Emma's ears perked up when she heard that. She was a True Love baby and had used her gifts a few times herself, but she had no idea she could become that powerful and travel between worlds. David placed his shoulder around his grown daughter. "Does that mean Emma could take us home once we save Henry?"

Belle quickly corrected Regina and David. "No, Fiona's not a child of True Love." She didn't want to say any more as it really wasn't her place to share her friend's secrets. From what brief time they spent together she knew that Fiona was a private person.

When she came to Storybrooke, the former deputy tried to keep under wraps as much as possible, but of course that was impossible as she came back older than when she first got there. She had left town barely out of her teens and when she returned she looked like she was in her late twenties.

Once people started talking and asking questions, the truth had came out. It wasn't entirely pleasant, so Belle was trying to spare her friend the same reception here on the ship until she had a better gauge on how everyone would handle the news.

Snow was confused."Well if she isn't a product of true love, then how did she get the power?"

Belle shifted her weight a bit, uncomfortable with answering the question. Rumple placed his hand on her back as a sign of support. "My love, did The Blue Fairy tell you who she was?" He was anxious to find out.

All eyes were on Belle and the unspoken pressure from the group finally won. "She's a child of magic." She hoped the succinct would suffice.

"I thought they were myths." David had heard of stories of powerful beings who had the ability to balance the light and the dark, but they were always from travelers and merchants that visited his village. No one ever knew of one in person. As he grew older, he put less and less stock in the tales, believing them to be more fantasy than reality. Given his life now, he should've known better.

Emma saw Belle looking down at her feet, avoiding any kind of eye contact. Based on her time as a bounty hunter and sheriff, she had a feeling that woman was hiding something. "What aren't you telling us?" They were on a mission to get Henry back, and her son was too important to her to risk being in the dark about Fiona.

"I think we need to just wait until she wakes up."

The hairs on Emma's neck stood up. This isn't what she wanted to hear. "We don't have time for any surprises Belle."

Seeing how it was better to rip the bandage off quickly to get it over with, Belle answered, "The Blue Fairy knew exactly who Fiona was as soon as she came back in town. She recognized her because she sensed her own magic at work."

Taking a deep breath, the brunette's eyes met with Regina."She's your daughter Regina. " The air from the room was immediately sucked out.

Stunned, Regina shook her head, unable to fully comprehend what she heard." No, no, no, that can't be right." She pointed at Fiona."It can't be her. My daughter is dead."

Mary Margaret instinctively reached out to Regina, to offer some comfort, but the older brunette flinches at the mere touch. "Don't!" She didn't want to be consoled for something that wasn't real. "This is some kind of trick. Or mistake." She was quickly losing her poise.

Belle couldn't help but feel even worse at the pained denials Regina gave. She spoke softly, but firmly. "I promise you; it's not a trick. She's Rose Red."

Just saying the name out loud had an immediate effect both Regina and Mary Margaret. The former takes a seat since her legs have suddenly become numb and the latter let out a soft cry. Swiftly David clutched his weeping wife in comfort.

Rumple was silent and contemplative as if he was trying to solve a riddle while Belle shed tears, full of compassion at the pain that was felt in the room.

Emma was completely lost as to what was going on, only just grasping the basics of everything.

She had just recently discovered that Fiona had served as deputy in Storybrooke years ago during the Curse and supposedly died. Now the woman was not only alive, she was Regina's daughter?

The blond couldn't wrap her head around this. "Who's Rose Red?" She immediately regretted asking the question because her memory finally kicked in. She had heard the name while reading a book on obscure fairy-tales at one of the foster homes she stayed in.

"She's my sister Emma." Her mother answered firmly.

Finally gaining some composure again, Regina walked over to Fiona again, this time she touched the side of her face. There has to be some explanation for tall of his her heart told her. She then stared at Belle and demanded, "What else did The Blue Fairy tell you?" The former mayor had the look of a mama bear about to strike.

The younger brunette gulped. If she was nervous around Regina before in Storybrooke, she was scared to death with the woman right now. "I don't really know anything else. Once that came out, Fiona and her had a private conversation." She never snooped with the her friend about the contents of that discussion so she had nothing substantial to add.

"No, you're hiding something." Regina didn't believe her. There had to be some way to connect the newborn baby she had watch slip away with the woman who yet again survived and was with them in Neverland. "I want answers now!" She raised her hand up and a blue ball of energy formed in her hands.

Seeing as his beloved was in danger, Gold stepped in between both women. "She doesn't have what you want. Back off Regina."

Unable to contain her emotions, she openly challenged him. "Or what?" Refusing to back down, she scowled. "Are you afraid I'd hurt your precious doll?" She wasn't going to cower to him, not now.

Rumple was unimpressed with her behavior. Maintaining perfect control, his voice remains steady, as if he never truly considered her a threat. "Back off or I won't tell you and Mary Margaret how Rose is still alive."

By his eyes, Regina knew her mentor had information that she wanted to hear._ I should've known he was involved!_

With the Rumpelstiltskin crisis temporarily averted, he instructed Belle, "Please wait for me in my room. It's at the end of the hallway on the right. I'll be in as soon as the three of us finish our private conversation." Still fearful of what Regina might do, she complied and left the room with her notebook and her bag.

Catching on the man's intentions, David objected. "I'm not going leave you here with my wife without me around." He was still hugging his wife while glaring at The Dark One.

Gold was not in a mood to negotiate with the peasant. "My business is ONLY with these women." If he was going to confess his sins, he intended to keep his audience as small as possible. I will not alter my terms."

"David, you can go with Emma." The pixie-haired woman squeezed her husband's hand. "I'll be ok." Once he saw her resoluteness, David and Emma left quietly and closed the door behind them.

Once they had the room to themselves, Regina felt comfortable enough to return to Fiona's side. She wanted so badly to hold her hand, but she didn't dare do so in front of Rumpelstiltskin.

Tapping her foot impatiently, Mary Margaret's voice seethed with anger. "Start talking Gold."

"Glad we can get straight to the point. Very well, I tell you what I know." He smirked at Snow's futile attempt to command him. He would speak to them on _his_ terms. Gold stood over Fiona so he could watch closely Regina's reaction as he spoke to her. "When you told me all those years ago that you used your wish from The Blue Fairy to have a child, I knew that a rare and precious opportunity had presented itself. I knew I need to have Rose."

That disclosure caught Mary Margaret by surprise. She never knew that her stepmother wanted a baby with her father, with all the animosity Regina displayed. "Rose was a gift granted by The Blue Fairy?" She wondered out loud.

Regina's cheeks flushed. She hadn't ever told anyone else except her mentor about what she wished for.

Rumple feigned incredulity at Mary Margaret's shock. "Oh, you didn't know that your stepmother needs help to have a child? " It was a low blow, but his petty side demanded that she pay for threatening Belle just a few minutes ago. "She can get pregnant, but she can't seem to keep them long enough to give birth."

Tears started falling from her cheeks, but Regina refused to give him the satisfaction of seeing her break down. After she had lost Rose, she managed to get pregnant twice, but couldn't make it past the third month with either child. She was devastated to be cruelly denied another chance at becoming a mother.

By then her marriage had further deteriorated and King Leopold gave up hope of having having a son as heir. She didn't even try to conceive in Storybrooke, the thought of having another miscarriage was too much to bear. So when she wanted a child, she adopted and Henry came into her life.

Keeping her focus on her daughter, Regina pressed him. "Why you were going to steal my baby?"

"Haven't I taught you better?" He sneered. "Power dearie, plain and simple. I needed your daughter as a back-up plan in case you or Ms. Swan couldn't fulfill your roles." He leaned in and whispered into her ear. "Nothing personal."

Knowing that somehow he didn't get the chance to use her sister, Mary Margaret asked, "How did you lose her?" it wasn't like him to have a wrinkle on his well crafted plans.

Rumple couldn't help but give her a dirty look at being reminded that he lost out on a deal. "Your so-called patron, The Blue Fairy, decided that your family was not fit enough to raise Rose, so she used my plan and stole her away." She had hid the child well, he never found her, even with all of his resources. "Funny how the people you trust the most hurt you."

Regina's eyes went wide at the revelation. She always had a suspicion about The Blue Fairy's loyalties being with her dead husband, but she couldn't believe that creature would betray her in such a despicable way.

Mary Margaret tried to think of possible reasons for the fairy's drastic behavior, but couldn't come up with any. So she decided to probe Gold about his wicked intents. "What would you have done with my sister if you did get her?" The very thought of having Rose being raised by him made her sick, but she had to know.

He calmly responded, "Children of magic are extremely rare. I would've made arrangements to have her properly and thoroughly trained by the best. Your sister had great potential and I wanted to exploit it."

Remembering her training at his own hands and his callous response to Snow about how he viewed Rose as merely merchandise that he intended to use, Regina lunged at Gold, and pinned him against the wall. The room began shaking and her hands started glowing.

"Regina, don't!" Mary Margaret tried to stop her, but to no stepmother wasn't going to listen to her in the heat of the moment.

Regina's voice was menacing as she spat out her words. "Give me one good reason while I shouldn't kill you right now."

Unfazed, he shot back to his former pupil, "There are actually several dearie, but the main one is that you can't. It's beyond your abilities. I'm the Dark One remember?" He wasn't scared by her, not now, not ever. "I have no need of her now, so you can stand down. Besides you still need me to get Henry back or have you already forgotten one child for the other? Perhaps blood is thicker than water." He taunted.

Regina hated that he had leverage over her once again. Getting Henry back in arms was a priority for her and having Fiona here didn't change that. She released him from her grip and stepped back.

"Much better." He brushed off his coat. "I'll leave the two of you to discuss your family business." Without waiting for their response, he exited the room.


	3. Private Moments

**Neverland - the Jolly Roger**

Unable to trust her former mentor's promise, Regina crossed her arms and looked at Mary Margaret. "We need to keep an eye on Fiona. Rumpelstiltskin is a snake. I can't believe that he's just quit." Despite his declaration that he had changed, there was no doubt in her mind that Gold was still the same opportunist that she had always known him to be. His chat with them only reinforced that in her heart.

Her step-daughter had the same thought. "I agree. Between the four of us we should be able to watch her around the clock." David and Emma would certainly be up for the task.

Of course she has to include the others. Regina hated having to depend on other people, it went against how she was raised. She saw it as a weakness as compromises had to be made when working with others. She already had to make a few concessions since she got to Neverland to rescue Henry and she was not looking forward to discovering what the others would expect from her.

Unfortunately for Regina, Snow's plan was also reasonable in light of who they were dealing with so she accepted it. "I'll take the first shift tonight and you can talk to your husband and daughter about the rest of the shifts. " She had absolutely no intention of leaving her daughter's side right now.

"Of course." The younger woman acknowledged. "Before I go, though, we should move her to the bed so she'll be more comfortable." The temporally allied woman transferred Fiona from the wood surgical table in the center of the room to the small bunk that bumped up against the wall. Snow gave her stepmother some privacy while she headed back to her room.

Taking a chair and moving it by the bed, Regina glanced at Fiona and for the first time, she saw herself in her daughter. Why didn't it see it before? She brushed her hand against her daughter's face again, as if she wanted to make an outline of it for future reference. Watching her sleep, Regina's memories and emotions from holding her tiny, precious daughter as a newborn came flooding in…

* * *

**Charmings' Cabin**

Without needing to eavesdrop, Mary Margaret could already guess what her husband was saying to Emma in the tiny hallway. Her daughter left to go to the small kitchen nook on the ship while David re-joined her in their family's cramped cabin for a private chat. "You never told me you had a sister." It wasn't an accusation, he was simply confused as to why his wife never shared this information before.

He was unprepared, both by the news itself and the strong reaction from Regina and his wife. Besides making this effort to save Henry, he never saw the two of them be on the same page on was a be disconcerting to see how willing they were together with only Rumpelstiltskin for company. He couldn't imagine how that conversation went.

"I'm sorry, I never mentioned it because it was all so brief. She died right after she was born. At least that's what we all thought." His soul mate was trying to maintain a neutral voice, but her shaky voice and glassy eyes gave away how she really felt.

David could tell that there was more to the story. He was scared to ask, but the circumstances seemed so unlikely. "How?"

She gave a heavy sigh, summoning up the distressing memories. "After a day or two of her birth, Rose started coughing. It didn't seem like a big deal at first. The doctors couldn't figure out what it was and it became worse, she started spitting blood from coughing so much."

She started sobbing again.

He sat down by his wife and gave her a tender side hug, kissing her on her cheek. "It's okay Snow. She's here, she's alive now. We'll keep an eye out for her."

* * *

**Gold's Cabin**

Rumple went to his cabin and gently tapped on the door before walking in. Seeing Belle unpacking and making herself at home made him smile. "I'm back." He was so grateful to have her back in his life.

The blue-eyed brunette came over and kissed him as if he had been gone much longer than a few minutes. "I wasn't sure how it would go. " She trusted that Mary Margaret would work to keep things civil between Regina and him, but that didn't mean they would listen. She didn't want to let the truth slip out the way that it did, but she was also pleased that Fiona's birth family knew.

When she had initially found out that Fiona was Regina's daughter, she was somewhat hesitant to trust her. After getting to know her, she changed her mind and learned to depend on the woman to assist her with getting the town organized and running.

She had nothing but the best wishes for Fiona, even if she wasn't a personal fan of her biological mother. She was curious about Regina and Mary Margaret's reactions, so she asked Gold. "Did they take the news well? Did they seem happy with the news?"

"Well, I wouldn't say there were thrilled with the news, but they seemed protective over Fiona already." He was more than happy to minimize contact with his former apprentice and her motley family. "I told them what I know, let them sort their family drama out 's the end that."

Belle, though, wanted to discuss that topic in more detail. There was some details that bothered her conscience. "Is it true? Did you want to steal Regina's baby?" She had heard The Blue Fairy's take on those events long ago and at first she was taken aback. Since Rumple was a father who had lost his own son, she had a hard time believing he would truly separate an innocent infant from her parents.

Her questions made him feel uncomfortable. "I didn't. The Blue Fairy kidnapped her." Intent meant nothing in this case he tried to tell himself, but his heart knew better.

"That's not what I asked. Did you really want to take Fiona away from her parents?" She did her best to keep her tone even, though her heart sank at hearing him hide behind words instead of telling her the truth. "I want to hear your side of the story." Belle had usually been the sort of person to hear all sides of a tale, knowing that many times the truth laid in the weaving all the threads.

Though he wished that he could avoid the conversation or at least delay it until they had more time together, Gold knew that Belle would not be satisfied until he talked. He sat at the table close to her. "Yes, I did. I had every intention of using Rose to get me to Bae. Having her stay with her birth parents was going to prevent that so I made arrangements to have her abducted." There was no need to disclose all the dreadful details of his plan.

She was inwardly repulsed at his past behaviors, but Belle could see that the man in front of her was changing into someone better. "Thank you." She was grateful that he trusted her enough to admit the painful truth. She of course had more questions, but she wasn't going to get them tonight.

* * *

**Med Bay**

Regina watched her daughter sleep peacefully, envying how the woman had no apparent turmoil in her, unlike her. She was internally a mess, a woman already suffering from having her baby boy snatched from right under her and today discovered that her daughter had too been taken as well. It gave her some comfort to see that she was alive, but it also cut her to have missed so much of her grown child's life.

Regina replayed over and over the short time she held Rose in her arms and she cruelly assessed her own failures as a mother. Regina recalled how light her baby, her newborn grey eyes looking up at her, squirming, but not anxious. Her baby girl was born healthy, with chubby cheeks and a tuft of jet black hair.

Remembering how quickly Rose got ill should've been her first clue. Even the plague that was going around the kingdom at the time didn't act as fast. She should've found a more competent physician. Unwilling to go back to the night when she thought her baby died, Regina instead brought her thoughts to the present. Rose was alive and with her. They had a second chance.

* * *

**Charmings' Cabin**

David could tell pushing Mary Margaret to talk about Rose's abduction was only making her feel worse. He instead focused on his supposed sister in law's other identity - as former deputy of Storybrooke. As he was in a coma for most of the curse, he didn't have any real connections to that life. He had absolutely no knowledge of Fiona. "You mentioned that her name was Fiona. Did you know her during the Curse?"

Snow knew exactly what her husband was trying to do and she genuinely appreciated the slight change in subject. Wiping her eyes, Snow started off with the easy parts. "Yes, I did. We actually met right before she got a job at the sheriff's station. She was deputy for a couple of years, working with Graham." She smiled how young Fiona seemed when they first met. The young woman was cleaning the station when Mary Margaret came in to report a girl had gone missing. "Believe it or not, we once helped crack a kidnapping case together."

"Really?" He wasn't aware that his wife assisted the Sheriff's department during the curse. From what he had known, she was a school teacher the entire time. Regina had seemed intent on ensuring that Snow would never have any position of power in the town.

"Okay, so maybe it was more her than me, but I was there." She admitted. "That's actually how she got to become deputy."

"Sounds like the job suited her skills, then." David noticed that his wife's voice was a bit more steady, more calm. Encouraged by that improvement, he continued listening, knowing that she would slowly open up. "Yeah, she was a good deputy. Hard working and committed to helping everyone in town. Kind of like Emma." She couldn't help but smile at the parallels between her younger sister and her daughter.

After a minute of silence, Mary Margaret was able to gather her thoughts some more. "Fiona also knew how to have fun. She used to hang out with Ruby, Ashley, and I quite a bit. Her and Ruby teamed up on karaoke nights quite a few times."

While Fiona could carry a tune decently, Ruby was tone deaf. The deputy would visibly cringe on stage at hearing her extroverted friend's loud screeching, but she didn't have the heart to tell her how bad she was. Oddly enough, part of the duo's appeal was the clash. Sometimes they won just because they were the most entertaining pair.

"What about you two? Did you do anything together?" David was trying to gauge what kind of bond two women had besides the biological one.

"Yeah, we did. She came over to help grade tests whenever I was swamped. We swapped stories about what was going on with our lives."The deputy was impulsive and at times, had a temper, and at times Fiona rubbed even Mary Margaret's mild-mannered personality the wrong way. Still, the young woman had been a good friend.

She thought for a moment. "We had a fun couple of years for sure. Besides Regina, I'd say I was her closest friend. Or so I thought." She couldn't imagine the fear her former friend had of being found out that drove her to fake her own death. She assumed that if she aged she must've had some sort of awareness of the curse. That must've been awful, seeing your loved ones trapped in the curse she thought.

"Regina and her were friends?" David couldn't believe it."How was that even possible?" Ever since he had met the spiteful and vengeful woman, he pretty much had only seen Regina show what little compassion and tenderness that she was capable of with only Henry. And that feat took a lifetime and an entire curse to accomplish.

Even as she tried to become a better person and to be civil with others, he sensed that she was stepping into new personal ground. He was struggling to imagine Regina in such a role.

His wife looked him in the eye. "It's difficult to explain, but those two had a mentor/apprentice kind of friendship. " She sighed, recalling what she had seen in the tumultuous relationship. "They weren't exactly warm and chummy, but they did have some respect for one another. "

Now that Snow had time to think about it, she had to admit that Regina had been different around Fiona, more patient and to some degree, remembered the two women butted heads, sometimes in public. Reflecting on what she knew now, it was a small miracle that Regina didn't retaliate at the girl for the outbursts. Her stepmother hated being defied in front of others.

In fact, Snow clearly remembered being reprimanded by Regina on several occasions on holding her tongue while she was growing up. It always ended up with some punishment being doled out for her insolence.

David still couldn't picture how that friendship worked. "If those two were truly friends, then why did she fake her own death? Why leave at all?"

Thinking on the fly, she assumed Fiona's escape had to be tied to fear. "My best guess is that she was afraid. If she was aging during the Curse, Regina would eventually notice. Maybe she didn't trust her." That thought troubled her - her younger sister desperate enough to leave everything she had known. She was so curious to see what happened with his younger sister in the past decade and a half.

* * *

**Med Bay**

Regina started talking to the unconscious woman laying in the bunk, both to help break the awkwardness of the long silence and to let out some pent up emotions.

"I can't believe you're alive." She began and then tripped over her next thought. She shook her head, thinking about the double meaning of those words. "How do I refer to you now? Do you even know what your real name is?"

Regina was curious if the Blue Fairy told Fiona her birth name or if the woman gave her some half-truths about who she really was. Regina didn't see how she could explain to Fiona why she would abduct her and give her to another family. Her daughter must have been furious at discovering who she was-

A new thought flashed in her mind and she blurted to her daughter. "Did you know who you were before you…. left Storybrooke?" She suddenly felt nauseous and dizzy; her heartbeat sped up as the realization set in.

It couldn't be true, her own daughter couldn't have purposely hurt her like that. But no other explanation made sense to her.

Speaking to Fiona as if she was awake, Regina started the one sided conversation. "You've had to have known. If I thought you died, you could slip away." She gulped, thinking about that dreadful night when Graham called her with the news. There had been an accident, Fiona's cruiser had been hit by a teenager's car during a street race.

Even though the sheriff told her not to come, she came to the scene to see for herself. A small crowd of EMTs, firefighters, and nosy townspeople were all gathered. Past the town's border, she saw the deputy's cruiser flipped over, burnt and crumpled.

"Why isn't anyone trying to help her?!" She knew that the curse would hinder any rescue by harming those who crossed the border, but their lives were an insignificant price to pay for her friend.

Graham stood next to her, his voice barely above a whisper. "I'm sorry Regina, but Fiona's gone." Between the crash and the fire, he thought there was no way anybody could have survived.

She pushed him away and tried to cross the town line, but the sheriff pulled her back. "Don't do this Regina. You don't want your last memory of her to be this."

She followed his advice and stayed away from the wreckage.

Looking back, Regina now saw how foolish that was. If she had listened to her gut, perhaps she would've ascertained what really happened. Perhaps she could've started searching for Fiona and gathered the truth.

Instead she mourned the death of a friend and buried her pain.

Shoving the rest of the memories away, she tossed her anguish upon Fiona. "You hurt me so badly. Why did you do it?" She immediately regretted her words, afraid at being so vulnerable. As ridiculous as it sounded, she was embarrassed to be sharing her intimate feelings out loud. She knew that Fiona wouldn't wake up anytime soon, but she was still nervous that the woman would wake up in the middle of her heartfelt thoughts and disclosures.

* * *

**Charmings' Cabin**

Giving her parents their space, Emma decided to come back to get some answers of her own. She hoped her mother would be in a mood to share. Happily, when she opened the door she saw that Mary Margaret was calmer than when she had left. David was already laying in his bunk, reading a book. He gave a small wink to his daughter as she settled on her small bed.

"I take it your chat went well?" She ventured.

"It did." Her mother confirmed. "Listen, I have a favor to ask you. Do you mind helping out with keeping an eye on Fiona? Regina and I don't exactly trust Gold to stay out of trouble with her."

"Yeah, of course." She was more than happy to help out. With their history with Rumpelstiltskin, she could see why the two women were being cautious. Using that a segue she asked Mary Margaret. "So what did he say to make you nervous?"

The brunette stiffened a little, not quite ready to share everything said at the room as she was still reeling from Blue's betrayal. "He admitted to having made arrangements to kidnap Fiona, but thankfully he was foiled." A lump in her throat was forming, so she cleared it. Emma deserved to hear more, but Mary Margaret didn't want to talk about it.

The blond sheriff didn't need any words from her mother to see that she needed to change the subject; the awkwardness was written on her face. "I know this is probably a difficult time to dicuss things, but I have a question about Fiona as deputy."

David raised his brow and was about to object, when Mary Margaret answered her. "Go ahead."

"Why isn't there any record of Fiona? I didn't see anything in the sheriff station that even hinted that she was there. " It made Emma feel uneasy that someone who worked out in the public was easily forgotten. "I understand that the curse clouds your memories and everything, but there has to be more."

Mary Margaret knew there was only one possible explanation. "Regina. She must've removed all her stuff." She was curious if Regina had destroyed everything or if it was tucked away somewhere in town.


	4. Reunion

**Neverland - the Jolly Roger**

Fiona opened her eyes and noticed that instead of being in the open water, she was in a cramped, confined space. For some unknown reason, she felt as if she was swaying ever so gently. Groggy, she tried to sit up straight to get an idea of where she was. Instantly she regretted it as her head banged up against the ceiling. Her loud yelp woken up the blond woman sitting to her. "You're awake!"

Rubbing the top of her head, Fiona asked, "Where am I? Where's Belle?"

Grabbing a damp cloth the stranger gently patted her forehead. "Belle's up on deck with the others. You're on The Jolly Roger. We picked you guys up a couple of days ago when we saw a fire signal coming from the shore. You've been unconscious all this time."

"So we made it." Fiona had honestly expected for the jump to fail. She thanked her rescuer. "I appreciate the help, Ms….?."

"Swan. Emma Swan." The blond woman gave her a smile."I'm your niece."

_So they know who I am. Guess that makes it easier._

"So Belle told you." Fiona guessed.

"Yeah, she did. She wasn't going to say anything, but with your history…." She fumbled as to how to proceed.

Knowing how strange her reappearance must have been, she finished Emma's thought. "People were wondering how I was still alive."

"Yeah, something like that. "

Curious as to what was revealed, she asked, "What exactly did Belle say?"

"She told us you were Regina's daughter Rose. And then Mr. Gold sent everyone away, but my mom and yours to have a private chat. Don't know what was said there." Emma's mom had been surprisingly tight lipped about that discussion and her father wasn't about to share what he knew.

"I guess that's the main point, right?" She nervously laughed. She was relieved that not everything was discussed and dissected. She was still sorting through a few things and now that she was on the same ship as her blood relatives, she discovered that she was having reservations about opening up too much.

Emma picked up on how similar Fiona's laugh matched her own.

Feeling sore, Fiona started stretching and walking around the room. Her legs felt like jelly. Before she fell Emma grabbed her, and shifted her weight so Fiona could sit down. "Careful there! Why don't you stay seated on your bunk until you stop feeling dizzy." It was a very reasonable idea so the ebony haired woman gave in to the suggestion.

"Thanks Emma."

"No problem."

"Hey Emma, by chance did anyone find my bag?" She was concerned that it was lost.

"Actually yeah, it came on shore." She got up and opened the storage bin by the far wall. She pulled the damp olive green bag out. "Don't worry, nobody touched it. Regina was adamant about that." She lugged it over." I hope whatever you packed isn't ruined."

"Thank you." Fiona unzipped the bag and pulled out a few tupperware style containers, vacuum sealed bags with clothes, books that were watter logged and there were still a few things inside the bag.

"Um, you packed for a pirate ship like it was a vacation?" She was amazed.

"I was told that you guys left right after Henry was kidnapped, so I grabbed some supplies." She was quite proud of herself for coming up with the idea of getting things for the trip. Fiona handed Emma a plastic box and one of the vacuumed sealed bags. "There are two changes of clothes in there for each person. Ruby and Granny helped with sizes and finding appropriate outfits. "

"You are certainly Regina's kid." Emma muttered to herself. _I would've never thought of this._ While Hook did manage to upgrade a few things on the ship while he docked at Storybrooke - stocking up on body wash and deodorant, he had nothing to address the special needs of women. She was certainly grateful to have them in her hands. "Thank you."

"Of course. Here, let me give you Mary Margaret and David's stuff." After checking to make sure she had the right ones, she passed them along to Emma. "I hope they'll make the trip easier."

Emma didn't even want to think how filthy her clothes were. Hook had offered some spare shirts and trousers they had, but they were for men, so she and the other women basically only wore them as they washed and cleaned their Storybrooke outfits. "They will; I can't wait to change into something more comfortable."

Curious as to what else was inside the bag, the blond looked at her aunt and asked, "What else did you bring here?" Before Fiona could answer, they were interrupted. "You were to inform us know if she woke up Ms. Swan. Not play 20 questions." Fiona recognized the voice before she saw Regina. The older brunette always had a way of taking a simple statement and turning it into some sort of a judgment. For so many years, Fiona had been on the receiving end of them. She was actually happy to see that someone else had gotten it this time, even if it was her niece.

Sensing that the two needed to catch up and she was only going to make it more awkward, Emma excused herself. "I'll take the clothes and stuff to our room. Thanks for everything."

Regina raised her brow at the clumsy exit Ms. Swan made, but she was grateful for it. She took the chair in the room and move it right next to her daughter, giving Fiona a small smile. Taking off her black gloves, she ran her fingers through her daughter's hair wistfully.

A few nights ago she was debating within herself over her ability to see Fiona not as a former colleague and protege, but as her daughter. She was honestly worried that she would never be able to see the woman in a familial light, that too much time had passed and memories of their turbulent friendship would override her maternal instincts.

Seeing Fiona there, alive and looking back at her, gave Regina the answer. Though she wanted to build from their relationship that they had years ago, she knew that the woman in front of her was her daughter, plain and truth that she now felt in her heart wrecked havoc on her earlier plans.

As of last night, Regina had mapped our her entire conversation - how she would start the discussion, the questions she wanted in mind, and the updates and details she wanted to hear. The mayor had carefully constructed a mental bullet point list, every gesture and word planned out as well as her outfits she wore. Now, though, she was at a loss for words and her daughter showed no initiative to begin.

Summoning up the courage to speak, Regina surprised herself with how she opened, "I'm assuming you knew the truth before you left Storybrooke." That was the last thing she wanted to say to her daughter, but it was the first thing on her mind and in her heart.

Equally shaky with this huge change in their relationship, Fiona took Regina's words and made a joke. "Left is such a nice way of putting it-" She instantly knew that Regina was insulted and hurt by the comments from her mother's face expression. Her dark brown eyes flickered with pain before she steeled herself.

Her voice was firm and low. "I was sparing your feelings, but since you obviously don't care for mine, let's just call it what it is." She cleared her thought, hoping to break up the lump that was forming. She didn't want to give way to tears even though what she was about say was made her feel like crying. "When you faked your death so spectacularly and ran away, did you know the truth? Did you know that I was your mother?"

She clasped her mouth, unable to believe the harshness in her voice. She hadn't intended to across so hostile, it was just a reflex she had developed to disguise her pain.

The wind knocked out of her, Fiona nodded. "Yes, Jefferson had told me." She remembered that revelation all too well. Under the influence of powerful pain killers and other medications, the man tossed out that information easily. She initially didn't take the news well.

"Ah." Part of her was relieved, she was worried that their whole relationship was based on a deception. While this wasn't really much an improvement, Regina was grateful to know that she and her daughter found each other on their own and were able to make a connection even though neither knew their relation at the time. She glanced down, avoiding eye contact, but Fiona still caught the few tears that fell from her mother's eyes.

Bothered by Regina's reaction, she apologized. "I'm sorry."

Regina waved it off. She wasn't trying to make her daughter feel bad; there was already enough pain between the two of them. "May I ask when he told you?"

Thankful that the conversation between them hadn't shut down after her sad attempt to lighten the mood, Fiona answered,"He told me in the hospital, after he was attacked at his home."

The news catches Regina off guard, there were plenty of opportunities for Fiona to come clean with what she discovered. Dumbstruck, she asked, "Why didn't you say anything?" Her heart knew that she had attempted her best effort with the deputy to develop a genuine friendship.

Being raised by an emotionally distant mother had made Regina leery of trusting others and yet still she worked hard to be a friend to the woman she thought as Deputy Kyle. She made changes to allow herself to keep the peace between her and Fiona. And for what? To realize that while she gave 100%, the other one was holding back, keeping secrets?

"I honestly didn't believe him. It sounded preposterous to me. He did give me proof later though."

There was silence between the two as the processed one another's comments.

After it started to make feel her awkward, Fiona asked, "Emma mentioned Gold talked to you after Belle said who I was." She was curious to see what information the man offered. From what she heard from Jefferson and others, Rumpelstiltskin had a complicated love/hate relationship with her mother.

"He explained some details about his and The Blue Fairy's part." Regina was certain her had held back quite a bit from her and Snow, but it was enough to make her hate the Blue Fairy and her former mentor even more. They're meddling had cost her so much. Once she got Henry back, Regina would have no qualms with retaliating against those who wronged her and her loved ones. Based on her stepdaughter's reactions a few nights ago, she may even receive Snow's blessing with this plan.

By her mother's facial expressions, Fiona could tell that Regina was thinking about revenge. She held her by the arms and pleaded. "Leave Gold and the Blue Fairy alone. They are no longer part of the picture anymore." Ruby and others had told her about her biological mother's struggle with trying to be a better person, she didn't want her return to be a catalyst for a slip. "It's not worth it."

For the second time this week, Regina couldn't believe what she was hearing. "You can't be serious." Even though she had done much to control her temper, she was no way she could let this go. While she should've expected this duplicity from the imp, just reflecting on how hypocritical the self-righteous fairy had been made her sick. The magical creature touted how she had always took the high road, but in truth she was willing to play The Dark One at his level and steal a baby.

"Thanks to her and that twisted little imp we were kept apart." If Henry were here he would have certainly described them as villains. "Thanks to their interference you were taken from me and raised by strangers from who knows where."

Fiona was slightly offended at that comment."I feel bad things worked out the way that they did, but it worked out in the end. I was adopted by wonderful people that cared for me. And we're here together now." She didn't want her birth mother to get the impression that she was raised unloved.

Regina held her daughter's hand and gave a patronizing smile at her. "Yes, I'm sure that they were so grateful to have you dear." It seemed so obvious to Regina that any couple with half a brain would fall in love with her daughter. " But that doesn't change the fact that you were snatched from a family that wanted you. A family that was willing and able to provide for you." In her mind, Fiona being adopted was completely different than her situation with Henry. Emma had given up her baby, which Regina begrudgingly admitted was for a good reason - to give him a better life. She, on the other hand, never chose that for her daughter. The decision was made by others.

The younger woman pulled away from her birth mother. "My adoptive parents DID provide for me and loved me very much." While the circumstances with how she was adopted wasn't ideal, Fiona never regretted having Emyn and Linus as parents.

"Not like I could." Regina squeezed her grown child's hand. " You would've been a princess; you would've had anything and everything you wanted." When she was early in her pregnancy, the former Queen had plenty of hopes and dreams about how she was going to raise her daughter.

Fiona, though, didn't hear her mother's words as they were intended. She felt as if Regina were making herself to be a superior parent than the ones she had, like it was some kind of pissing contest to her. Her tempered flared. "Who are you to judge?!"

"I wasn't judging, I was just stating that things would've been better if you had stayed with us." She couldn't understand why Fiona was resisting her. Regina was assuring that she was wanted.

Fiona felt as if her adopted parent's reputation were being sullied and had to defend them. "No, you are judging them. They were kind and decent people."

Regina read into Fiona's actions and words the wrong way. "Is that why you didn't come to me when you found out? Did you think that it would ruin the relationship you had with your adoptive family?"

Fiona struggled to find an explanation, but she couldn't pick the right words to adequately describe what she had felt. She chose to share the closest thing she could think of. " I was afraid and confused."

Not believing that flimsy excuse Regina pushed back. "When had I ever gave you a reason to fear me?!What was there to be confused about?" Her voice conveyed pain at how she was betrayed by someone she thought she was so close to.

Unfortunately for her, Fiona was every bit her mother's daughter and lashed out. "Maybe the fact that you were the one who attacked Jefferson." She had discovered it on her own and the hatter confirmed it. She remembered how physically ill she felt when she found out that her own mother was capable of such violence and it gave her a glimpse of what she must have been like as the Evil Queen.

"Is that what he told you?" She was hurt that her own daughter chose to believe a half-mad stranger's side of the story without getting hers. She was outraged that Jefferson selfishly unleashed half truths on her unprepared daughter. Recalling the fight she had with the hatter, she replayed the vicious taunts he threw at her that finally made Regina snap and physically pummel him.

_If she were alive and here, she would hate you with everything she had; just like you were disgusted with your own mom. Like mother, like daughter._

That bastard knew the truth and had the audacity to throw that in her face! "Did it ever occur to you that perhaps he deserved it?"

Fiona shot back. "Is that how you justify what you did? Do you go to bed thinking that everyone deserved what they got?" The conversation was rapidly deteriorating as both women were letting their emotions rule and their mouths run. "Did everyone in town deserve what they got? How about my cousin? What did he ever do to you?" She had tried so hard to put that behind her, but even after all the time that had passed, she couldn't move on from that night.

Caught up in the argument and unable to take a step back and it from a different perspective, Regina corrected her. " He's the one that broke into my house. He held me at gun point. I swear to you I had nothing to do with that."

"He was only stealing because that was the cursed personality he was stuck with! You forget, I knew him before. He was a good guy. You…you twisted that! Thanks to you, he's gone." Her voice continued to grower louder as she refused to contain her rage in any longer. "After I had to shoot him to protect you, it became harder and harder to look you in the eye and not feel angry. As time passed and the curse made everyone else get over it, I started to hate you even more for what you had done. I knew I had to leave and I took the first chance I could."

Finally grabbing a glimpse of what Fiona had been feeling all those years, Regina stood could've snatched her heart out of her chest and Regina wouldn't have felt the pain that she felt now.

Instead of reveling in the fact that she silenced the Mayor of Storybrooke, Fiona gave way to tears. Her face red with pain, resentment, and anger. Her voice tensed up. "Don't pretend that you're the victim in our story." With a spite Regina was all too familiar with, Fiona pushed her away. "Get out!"

Unable to keep her composure any longer, the former Evil Queen retreated to the upper deck.


	5. Desperate to Catch Up

**The Jolly Roger - Deck**

Emma came up and walked over to her parents as they were swabbing the decks. Seeing her approach, David looked concerned. "Is everything alright? I thought you were watching Fiona for another hour?"

"She's good; she's awake now. We chatted a bit. Believe it or not, she actually had some supplies for us, including clothes." Snow immediately broke away from them to join her sister on the deck below. Emma grabbed her mother by the arm. "Wait! Regina's there with her now. They're talking."

Based on their brief conversation, Emma felt sorry for Fiona, the woman below seemed a bit unsure of the situation. Now she had to deal with Regina, who Emma could already sense, was already coming in too strong. Emma went through something similar with her own mother a year ago, when the curse was first broken.

As well intentioned as Mary Margaret was, her desire to bond with Emma ironically strained their relationship. It was only after they had given each other time that they were able to establish and build a quasi-parent/friend relationship.

Emma hoped the two would be able to sort things out much better than she and her mom had.

David stood with his daughter. "She's right sweetheart. Just wait a bit."

Impatient, Snow argued with her husband. "I should be there too! She's my sister." It was impossible for her to explain to David and Emma how strongly she needed to see Fiona. For them, she was some unknown person who just popped in their lives, but for her Fiona was a connection not only to her dear father, but a physical link to her stepmother.

She had never forgotten how happy Regina was with them during the pregnancy. The mood was lighter and more hopeful. They felt like a true family. Though so many things have happened since then between her and Regina, she dearly hoped that Fiona being here could rekindle that bond.

However, her husband and daughter felt very differently.

"Honey, give them time." David understood that his wife was desperate to be reunited with her sister, but he also recognized as a parent the need to be with one's child. As much as he loathed Regina at times, even he had to admit that she tried her best to be a good mother to Henry and she no doubt had the same intentions with her daughter. "This is a lot for everyone, especially Fiona. Rushing in will only overwhelm her."

She knew that he was right, but that didn't mean she couldn't get a bit closer to the stairs to get an idea of how everything was going. No one could ignore the raised voices they heard, including a very clear "Get out!" from Fiona. _That's not a good sign_ Emma thought.

When the trio heard the door open below, they scurried around the deck, finding things to do before Regina came upstairs, her face as hard as stone.

"Guess that didn't go as planned. Perhaps I could've helped if I was there." Mary Margaret muttered just loud enough for her husband to hear. David, acting as he hadn't heard or seen anything in the last 5 minutes, went back to mopping the deck while Emma tried to look busy and avoid eye contact with the Mayor. It was an awkward situation. The obviously upset Regina went to Hook and had some words, but they were too far away for anybody to have heard what was said. He handed her a map and the woman disappeared below again, presumably to be somewhere alone.

After Regina had been gone for about 20 minutes or so, Mary Margaret started walking to the stairs.

"What are you going to do?" Emma asked her mother, eying her mother curiously. "You're not going to barge in there and start catching up with her? Especially after how poorly it went with Regina?"

"No, Emma I will not. I'm simply going to make sure she has some food." The blond rolled her eyes, unable to believe that her mother would try to fib to her. Emma didn't need her superpower to see that load of bull.

Once Mary Margaret snatched up some food from the kitchen, the determined princess headed to Fiona's temporary bunk and knocked on the door. When she heard no response, she knocked again.

Inside Fiona was staring at the door, debating whether or not to invite Snow it. She knew it was her based on the rhythmic beat she gave on the door. Even her knocks sound happy she thought. Seeing as her sister was evidently trying to talk to her, she decided to just bite the bullet. "You can come in." Fiona called out.

"I brought you something to eat." Mary Margaret put on her best smile and carried in a tray with a small bowl of chili and some pieces of bread."Thought you might be hungry."

Not one to refuse food, Fiona accepted. "Thank you." She sat down in the chair and started eating. She felt her sister's eyes watching her closely, but didn't say anything.

She had every intention of keeping her word with Emma and simply give Fiona a meal without any pressure of conversation, but the desire to bond with her sister was stronger than she thought. Uneasy with the silence, Mary Margaret took the initiative to start the conversation. "I'm so happy you're back."

"Me too." She smiled back, trying to appear happy as her older sister, but still reeling from her fight with Regina.

Silence again. Mary Margaret started tapping the table to disperse the nervous energy that was building.

"Is there something on your mind you'd like to talk about?" Fiona asked. She could sense that her half sister was anxious over something.

"When Belle told us about you, I assumed that you must have found out before the car accident. Am I right?"

She nodded her head affirmatively.

"How long had you known?"

Finishing her bread, Fiona paused to think about her response. "A year before. Jefferson told me."

That makes sense she thought. When she was still under the curse and Emma was in town, Jefferson had snatched her when she attempted to leave Storybrooke. Not crossing the border saved her life, but it was still in danger as the half-mad man had used her to get Emma to bring magic back. As part of his punishment Regina had him keep both his memories of the Enchanted Forest and his cursed one, driving him to become irrational and psychotic. Even once the curse broke, she had largely avoided him, still leery of his sanity, though he seemed more at peace now that he was vindicated.

Apparently he was able to convince her half sister of the truth about her origins. Curious as to what else he said, she asked, "Did he tell you anything about us? Besides you were?"

Fiona responded. "As a matter of fact he did. He told me that Regina was an apprentice of Rumpelstiltskin." She bit her lip, debating whether or not to bring the question up. "He also said that my father was that true?" She found she was an unable to name her mother as a suspect, the mere thought of even a possible connection made her sick.

Mary Margaret didn't say a word and couldn't look her in the eye.

"So it's true? She had our father murdered?" She immediately lost her appetite and pushed the bowl away from her. Even though Jefferson implied that her mother was guilty years ago, it hadn't seemed real until now. Her heart started beating fast and anger she had previously felt when her mother was in the room returned.

Seeing her sister distressed, she tried to offer an explanation. "Fiona-"

"Please leave. Now." She looked Mary Margaret straight in the eye. "I want to be alone. Please"

As she left, Mary Margaret couldn't help but think,_This isn't how I wanted it to go. _


	6. Regrets

**The Jolly Roger - Guest Cabin**

Sitting alone in her room, Regina stared at the walls doing her best to push away the intense pang that was growing inside of her. Discovering that her daughter was back in her life gave her hope that she was getting part of her happy ending that she had craved her entire life. Instead, her happy reunion ruined, with the younger woman rejecting her, calling her a villain just as Henry many times before. Worse yet, when she came on deck it became apparent to her that many of the other travelers heard some of the exchange. The look of pity from Snow White was too much to bear and the proud woman went downstairs to be alone.

She hoped that staying busy with work on the Jolly Roger would help her to stop replaying her fight with Fiona. It didn't, she simply took out some of her anger on the ship as she completed a few menial assignments. Nothing had eased her pain.

Jefferson was right. History was repeating itself in a twisted way. She banished Cora to another realm all those years ago in an attempt to escape her mother while her own daughter ran off. It didn't seem fair. What nagged at her is that she couldn't understand what she had done to deserve this hatred. The former Queen couldn't comprehend a plausible reason for Fiona to put her through that hell. There had to be more to it than what Fiona told her.

She couldn't understand how her own daughter could view her in such a hateful light, when Regina had not done anything to her personally. Even without knowing that they were related, Regina gave what she could to Fiona, which was much more than the Mayor ever received from Cora.

As if it happened yesterday, Regina recalled a time she made the mistake of talking back to her mother with the same tone Fiona used on her.

They were home after another disastrous meal where Cora was trying to match Regina with someone she thought was suitable enough for her daughter. His family had both wealth and status, so Cora was pushing hard to get Regina engaged in the conversation, but she wasn't interested. She had just started seeing Daniel secretly and had no wish to be dangled in front of another suitor.

"I don't understand you sometimes. I'm beginning to think you don't want to ever get married." She was exasperated.

"Mother, I do want to get married! I just want it to be about love and not about prestige." Regina was pleading with her to see her side of it.

Cora was sick of hearing her rebellious daughter's foolish thoughts."Enough! I don't want another word. Go to your room, get changed, and think about the shame you caused us today."

Even though she knew it was an immature move, Regina stomped to her suite and slammed the door behind her. If mother thinks I'll back down, she's wrong! She told herself. She went ahead and got into her riding outfit. There was no way she would miss out on her riding lesson with Daniel. Knowing that her mother would hear her leave if she used the door, she opened the window to escape. Slowly she climbed down until she was close enough to drop to the ground safely. She started walking to the stables, when she heard her mother's voice "Just where do you think you're going?!"

She swallowed and faced the woman." Mother, I was going for my riding lessons. A lady mustn't miss them." She snidely remarked. It felt good to throw her mother's words back in her face.

Suddenly she felt Cora's gloved hand smack hard in the face. "Don't you dare disrespect me! I'm doing my best to help you be successful and you have the gall to both disobey me and talk back?!"

Usually she backed down and remained silent, enduring her overbearing mother's lecture, but today she felt emboldened. "Why can't I just have a day where I do what I want to do?"

"Because this is not your life Regina. This is about our legacy as a family. Your father and I want to give you what we have and more. You can be married and gain even more than what you have now. I was able to go from a miller's daughter to princess, just imagine how high you can climb."

"For what, mother? So I can be as miserable as you?" The words escaped her mouth without any thought and she instantly knew she crossed the line. She heard wood twisting and moving and found branches from a nearby tree enveloping her torso tightly.

Cora's hand slowly closed into a tight fist and Regina felt the air escape her lungs.

"Please mother, I'm sorry." She exhaled. She tried to get her next breath, but she was struggling to get the needed air.

The embittered woman spoke deliberately. "I don't want to hear another word from you today. You will go back to your room, you will stay there until supper tomorrow night. Is that clear?"

Since she couldn't speak, Regina merely nodded.

"Good." Before releasing her she gave one more squeeze. "If you EVER speak to me like that again, I'll make you regret it."

Finally releasing her, Regina collapsed on the ground, catching her breath. She walked to her room slowly, took off her riding jacket and shirt to examine the damage done. There were bruises quickly forming from where the branches compressed her. She tried to lie down and get some rest, but the pain made it difficult.

Regina never forgot the lesson. She had promised herself that if she ever became a mother, she'd treat them better than what she gotten. Looking back at how she raised Henry, she felt a sense of pride. Sure, she saw that there were things that she regretted, but she never physically hurt him. He was loved by her the best way she knew how.

Hearing loud footsteps approaching, her eyes turned to the door. For a brief moment, she thought it was Fiona coming in to apologize, just like she used to do in Storybrooke. During those tumultuous couple of years whenever they had an argument that left both upset, it was usually the younger woman who extended the olive branch. Honestly it was because it was typically Fiona who would lose her cool, doing or saying (sometimes both) something that she'd regret. Even though Regina knew it wasn't the healthiest of relationships, but she still cherished having someone to talk to as simply Regina instead of the Evil Queen or Mayor Mills.

Instead Captain Hook walked through the door, "I wanted to see how you were doing. You seemed upset after your conversation with Fiona." When she came up to the top deck, her face said it all to him - the hurt, anguish, and scorn. He wanted to say something to her, but he knew her pride wouldn't allow her to accept his comfort publicly. Instead he gave her a small navigation assignment to keep her busy. He waited until everyone was pretty much occupied before he came to check on her.

She waved him off. "I'm fine Captain, you may return to your other duties."

He resisted smiling at her attempt to order him around on his ship. He knew she wasn't in a mood for joking, so he maintained a professional tone. Without invitation, he sat down on a bunk across from her. "Give it time and I'm sure your daughter will come around."

_How dare he offer me parenting advice!_ "I'm sure that piece of wisdom was from your vast vault of parenting experience." She sarcastically snapped. "I know how to be a parent."

Hook didn't need to guess what Regina was feeling at this moment. He knew all too well the suffering one goes through when a child scorns you. Hook gave a heartfelt apology. "I didn't mean to offend you. You're right. You do have more experience at being a parent, but I do know how it feels to be rejected by a child you care for."

The pained tone he disclosed with told Regina that what he was saying was for real. "When?" Hook never mentioned being a father.

"Bae. Or as you know him, Neal." That revelation left her dumbfounded. "He came to Neverland years ago. Once I realized who he was I did my best to offer him a family. "

Knowing that Neal eventually met Emma in a different land, Regina guessed, "He wasn't interested in having a stepfather."

Their conversation played out in his mind, with Bae requesting to being taken to the Darlings. "No, he made it quite clear that he'd rather stick with strangers from a different land than make an honest attempt at rebuilding." It was something that he carried with him all of these years. He couldn't take back what happened, but helping Regina and the others get Henry back gave him some solace.

Buoyed by the captain's confession, she started opening up. "To be honest, I'm not so sure it will be any different with Fiona and myself. Thanks to Rumpelstiltskin and the Blue Fairy meddling in our lives, my own daughter not only grew up without me, she didn't even even trust me to tell me who she was." Saying those words out loud helped Regina to identify the pain that really gnawed at her bones. She and Fiona had spent all that time together and not once did the young woman come clean. She had acted as if they were perfect strangers and kept up the ruse for a couple of years. To add insult to injury, her daughter would rather have faked her own death and run away instead of confiding to her the truth. "I think the damage is done."

The captain offered a thought that she hadn't considered. "She cared enough to come to Neverland to be with you, with no guarantee that we can get back. She obviously wants to reconcile. Maybe you two can try to talk again later, once everything has cooled off."

Her insecurities getting the best of her, Regina looked away. "I'm pretty sure she wants nothing to with me." The pain that her daughter caused her today was too much for her to completely ignore. She was barely holding on to a thread - her baby was gone and she was a ship with a group of people who have each inflicted some measure of pain on her, whether intentionally or not. She had put up with too much pain throughout her life and couldn't take any more. Her walls were up and Regina had no idea if she could or wanted to take them down, even if it was for her beloved Rose.

Observing that she was contemplating about what to do next, Hook took that as his cue to leave so she could have her space. Before departing, he added," Don't be so quick to dismiss an opportunity to be a family again. You may never get another chance."


	7. Gazing at the Stars

**The Jolly Roger - 2am**

After trying (and failing numerous times) to get some rest, Emma went upstairs to the deck and star gaze. It was becoming one of the ways she unwound on the ship as there wasn't much else to do in the middle of the night. Reaching the top of the stairs, she saw that the deck was pretty much empty, with just essential crew up and about.

By the stern of the ship she saw a figure leaning against the railings, staring out into the pitch black sea while drinking. For a second she thought it was Regina based on her hair and coat, but the way the figure was leaning told her it was someone else.

She walked closer and caught Fiona's face in the moonlight. She obviously had something on her mind. Emma also noted that the trench coat she was wearing wasn't black, but in this light she couldn't tell what it was.

"Hey." Emma greeted the newest member of her family.

The brunette woman gave her a small smile, but didn't say went back to watching the twinkling stars ahead.

Emma took a spot next to her and noticed that Fiona was drinking from rather large flask. "Don't tell you me you packed hooch in that duffel bag of yours." She already felt woefully unprepared when Fiona shared those supplies with her from Storybrooke.

Her aunt affirmatively nodded and took another swig for good measure. She exhaled loudly and went back to looking out into the sea.

The silence was making Emma a bit irritated and uncomfortable. "Are you trying to ignore me?" She finally asked.

Fiona exhaled, looking emotionally fatigued. "No, I'm not Emma." She rubbed her temples and then looked at the blond sheriff. "It's just that in the 24 hours that I've been awake in Neverland, I'm currently batting 0-2 right now with family conversations. And since you and David are the last ones on the ship, I'm trying to hold off on chatting until I can get an idea of how to do this right." Things were not going as she planned. Actually she didn't really have a plan. All she had was this innate desire to make some connection with her blood relatives, but when she finally got to them, she found herself unable to bond.

She knew that part of it was her fault; she just didn't feel like she belonged.

"That bad, huh?" The sheriff had sensed that things turned sour when she came down to their cabin and saw her mother lying in bed with a pillow over her head. While she wasn't as despondent as she had been in the aftermath of Cora's death, Mary Margaret was pretty depressed. Thankfully, her father arrived shortly afterward and was able to coax her to join them for dinner.

Her voice was soft and tired. "Yep, I messed up. Again." Trying to be more social, Fiona offered the blond her flask. "Not sure if you drink, but if you want some George Dickel, please be my guest. "

Considering the day they all had, Emma accepted it and had some of the whisky. It was surprisingly good."That is really smooth."

"That's why I brought some with me. While I usually have it with ginger ale, it's actually quite good on its own." She couldn't pack everything she wanted into that bag, but she was glad she bought this along. "Let's just say I had a feeling that I'd be needing this."

* * *

For the next 10 minutes, they took turns drinking. Both of them were nervous; this was the first time they had really met and they were both worried about saying something wrong to the other. On top of that, neither woman was entirely comfortable with the idea of family. Emma had only the past year to get used to it, but a lifetime of being alone. Fiona was out of her element as she had spent decades on her own, living with the cursed version of her family before running away.

As the drinks started kicking in, Emma was feeling bold enough to speak more freely. She half-joked, "Since you mentioned family earlier, I should inform you that Mr. Gold is Henry's grandfather, which gives you another shot. So you have 3 people left."

Picking up on the banter Fiona noted, "If he's Henry's grandfather, then what's his relation to me? I'm Henry's grandaunt."

Emma thought for a moment." Okay, so you're not related that way, but I guess if you're also Henry's big sister, he'd be your adopted grandfather?" The thought scared her just a bit." Whoa, that's pretty twisted."

They both laughed at the confusing family tree they shared. "I would hate to have to draw out the family tree."

Emma agreed. "Me too."

* * *

With the buzz coming in nice and strong, the duo continued chatting about family, particularly with having to deal with mothers practically the same age of themselves.

"When we got back, my mom wanted to go out for girl's night at The Rabbit Hole. It was so awkward." Emma shook her head, recalling the unforgettable evening. "She can't dance."

"Still? Oh, I was hoping it was simply the curse that did that to her." Fiona quipped.

Emma spitted out some of her drink. They shared another round of laughs."Okay, enough about me and Snow. I want to hear about you and Regina. What exactly did the two of you do for fun." After living in Storybrooke for all this time, Emma had a hard time imagining Regina relaxing.

"Well…"Fiona started, trying hard to think of an activity that fell into that category.

"Wait, wait, let me guess." Emma was silent for a few moments before coming up with some ideas.

"Dancing?"

"No."

"Gardening"

"She did that, I just watched. Growing up on a farm, the last thing I wanted to do was work in the dirt."

"Movies?"

"Only old ones, like with Vivien Leigh." She remembered fondly watching A Streetcar Named Desire at her mother's house.

"Hmm…I can see that." Emma mused. "Though it's kind of hilarious to think the Evil Queen would be munching on popcorn watching movies."

As soon as the blond said it, Fiona stiffened. She hated hearing the infamous title associated with her mother.

"Did I say something wrong?" It then dawned on Emma what the problem was. "You don't think of her as the Evil Queen, do you?"

Fiona admitted to Emma, "I don't see her that way."

"Why?" She wasn't saying it to make her aunt feel worse; she just wanted to get an idea of where her head was at. Fiona was the first person besides Henry and Archie who didn't seem to be hostile towards the Mayor.

"Look, I know that my mother has done some horrible things, not even counting the curse. But that doesn't change the fact that same woman was my friend, someone who gave me advice and looked out for me. I'm not saying I completely agree with how she did things even as Mayor in Storybrooke. " She exhaled loudly. "This is just one of those things where my heart and my head disagree."

Emma could see how it would be difficult and she had a better appreciation for her own son's struggle. "I never thought of it that way. I guess that's how Henry sees her two."

Fiona was grateful she didn't have to go deeper with her conflicted feelings. The mention of Henry did raise her curiosity. "What's he like?" She asked.

Emma took another sip of the whisky, giving herself some fortification before talking. "Henry is..." She had a difficult time finding the words to sum up how special he was to her. Finally Emma settled on a few traits that she had grown especially fond of. "He's a great kid. Sweet, kind, smart - everything you'd want as a parent."

Fiona had heard those same attributes given to Henry by Ruby, Granny, and a few others in Storybrooke. She was amazed that the young man was able to figure out how to get Emma to back in town to break the curse. What impressed her even more was that thanks to him, her birth mother was still alive. Based on her adoptive aunt's reaction and some of the others in town, that was not an easy feat. "I can't wait to meet him."

Emma laughed.

Fiona was confused at her niece's reaction to what she said. "What was so funny?"

"You. Just then you sounded so much like my mom." She grinned as she explained. "She is very optimistic person. I guess I had that gene skipped a generation and went straight to Henry."

Slightly embarrassed at being called out for being hopeful, Fiona blushed. "Look, I just think that with a boatload of highly motivated and determined people, finding him is only a matter of time."

The blond had to agree."When you put it that way, it does sound promising. We'll certainly need all the help we can get. Between Hook's ship, my parents' skills, and the magic Regina and Rumple have, we should be able to win." She was starting to feel pretty confident, but she then noticed her aunt's face fell and her demeanor shifted. "What's wrong?"

"Trust me, Emma, we don't need to rely on magic to find Henry. We'll be better off if we avoid it as much as possible." She knew it would be impossible in Neverland to stay away from magic, but she didn't want it to be a crutch.

"Because it always comes with a price? Yeah, I know." Emma grumbled. Everyone loved reminding her of that fact.

"Too high a price in my opinion." Fiona shared with her. "And never available when you truly need it."

* * *

With the flask long gone and Fiona practically passed out, Emma went downstairs, bringing the brunette with her, to get some rest. It was much harder than she thought as her inebriated aunt wasn't much help.

They stumbled down the stairs and she winced at the ruckus. I wonder if anyone heard us?

As if to answer her question, the door nearest to them opened and Regina popped out to reprimand her. "Ms. Swan, do you really think you can make all sorts of noise this hour-" Regina stopped her lecture when she saw Fiona hanging on Emma, unable to stand on her own. "What happened? What did you do to her?"

A smirk lifted both corners of Emma's mouth. It was hilarious to her at how the mayor was overreacting. "Relax, Regina. She just had too much to drink." She tried to walk past the irate woman, but she was blocked. "Excuse me? I'm trying to take her back to her bed."

Smelling the alcohol from the sheriff, Regina placed her hands on her hips. "I'll take it from here Ms. Swan. You've done enough."

Emma was too tipsy to argue. "Fine. " She practically pushed Fiona into Regina's arms. "You can play mom." And with that she went back to her cabin.

Ignoring the sarcastic remark, Regina escorted her very intoxicated daughter to med room. As she helped her into the bunk she noticed a small coin on the floor.

Picking it up, she saw that it was a plastic chip, blue and it has some writing on it. On one side it had the number 6, with 'months' under it and on the other side, had the letters NA on it. Seeing that her daughter was soundly asleep, she tucked the chip into her pant pocket and returned to her room to examine the piece more carefully.


	8. Morning After

**The Jolly Roger-Guest Cabins**

"Time to wake up Emma." David gently nudged his daughter. Breakfast was being served and there was plenty of work that needed to be done that day.

"Leave me alone." She groggily ordered and tried to curl herself back up in her bunk.

"That I can't do. You need to get something to eat before the all the food is gone."

"Fine!" she said, swinging her legs out and getting up. A massive headache greeted her and she felt as if she was going to be sick. She realized that she had drank much more than she originally thought.

"Here." Her father had a small wooden bucket in his hands and she kindly obliged him by using it.

Once she was finished, she wiped her mouth with a rag. "Thanks."

Rubbing her back, he asked, "Do you need me to get any medicine?"

"I'll be fine, I just need to move at a much slower pace this morning." When he started to protest, she told him "I'll be ok. I'm going to wash up and meet you in a bit."

Seeing as she was able to do it, he left to join the others for breakfast.

Once she had the room to herself, Emma changed clothes and went to the wash basin to finish up. Entering the dining area, she found her father at the table with Captain Hook standing over him.

"Ah, Emma. So glad you could join us. I was just giving out assignments to the crew. You and your father are going to help with the armory. We're planning on stopping by an uninhabited island tomorrow to find food and I want to make sure we can handle any surprises that may come up."

"Lovely." She looked around and noticed a couple of people missing." Where are Mary Margaret and Regina?"

"They are up on deck, cleaning up your and Ms. Kyle's mess. I was going to have you ladies take care of it yourselves, but they insisted." He clicked his tongue in amusement." What parents do for their children."

Confused, Emma asked, "What mess are you talking about?"

"Don't tell me that you two were that intoxicated that you forgot?" He chuckled."Next time you feel like having a drinking game, just remember to lean on the railing when you hurl. We may be pirates, but even we like our ship to be somewhat clean. Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to check on the rest of the crew." He left, leaving Emma to chat with her father.

"Were you that drunk?" David asked with concern. He had slept like a rock last night and didn't even noticed that she had left the room.

"No! Ok, maybe." She replied while eating bread with butter. She needed something in her stomach right now. "But as soon as I realized we passed out limits, I headed back to our rooms." She remembered that Regina caught them coming down and tried to chastise her._ Can't wait what she has to say the next time she sees me._

"What were the two of you doing that late?" His tone was more father like and worried than usual.

Emma, though, was not in the mood to divulge. "Chatting." She was a grown woman, she saw no reason for David to pry.

"About?" He wasn't trying to be nosy, but he wanted to make sure that Emma's conversation went better than Snow's.

"I'm not telling you." She sipped on some coffee and sighed at the wonderful taste in her mouth. "It was a good chat though." She added and he smiled.

"I'm glad it worked out." He had a feeling that Emma's more casual manner would be a much better fit than his wife's forceful attempts at opening their newest family member up. He hoped Mary Margaret and Regina would use that as a guide on how to approach Fiona. "When you're done with breakfast, we'll get started on work. "

Fiona woke up starving. _I feel like a truck just smacked into me._ She searched in her bag for a first aid kit and grabbed a couple of aspirins. Double checking that she avoided Regina and Mary Margaret, Fiona peeked through the door to see if the coast was clear. She then left the room and quickly ducked into the kitchen to find something to eat.

A handsome darked haired fellow was at a table alone, eating his breakfast, a filling meal of sausage (or so she guessed), a piece of bread, and seasoned potatoes with vegetables mixed in. Seeing her, the well dressed man stood up and bowed ever so slightly. "It's good to see that you are recovered, milady. Would you care to join to join me for breakfast?" It was his second breakfast, but he didn't feel like she needed to know that. It was one of the many benefits of being captain.

With her hunger at an all time peak, she accepted his invitation. "Yes, thank you."

Pleased that he managed to gain her as company, he introduced himself. "I'm Captain Killian Jones, but you can call me Captain Hook." He waved his left arm to show her the reason for the nickname." Welcome to my ship."

"A pleasure to meet you Captain." Shaking his right hand, she responded in kind. "Fiona Kyle."

"I know who you are." He reminded her. He directed her to the tiny kitchen, grabbing a plate and a fork for her. "Please help yourself. Everyone else has eaten, so no need to be shy." Fiona went ahead and filled her plate with a bit of everything. Meanwhile Hook poured her a cup of coffee. "So grateful we stocked up on some before we left Storybrooke. How do you like your coffee?"

"Just a dab of cream and sugar, thank you."

The two sat down at Hook's table and they started eating. Once most of the meal was pretty much finished Fiona began the conversation. "You have a beautiful ship, Captain."

He was very proud of The Jolly Roger and accepted the compliment. "Thank you, she's a fine ship. The fastest ship in all the realms." Seeing as she had spent most of her life in the world without magic, he was doubtful that her assessment was based on many samples."Have you've been on many ships?"

She surprised him with her answer. "My family owned a few ships that they used mainly for trade. I joined my grandfather on a couple of the more local trips. I even got to help the cooper assemble the barrels." Those trips were some of her best memories as she got to hang with some colorful characters who loved having a child hang on their every word.

"Fortune favors us then! I was going to have you help with washing and cleaning the crew's clothes, but we have need of your special talents. We're sending some of the crew tomorrow to scavenge and hunt for food supplies. Simon could use an assistant with getting the barrels set up to store what they find. He hasn't had much experience, but our regular cooper had decided to stay in Storybrooke when he fell in love." He sighed, happy that Remy found happiness, but still sad that he lost a fine shipmate and comrade. "If you feel up to it Ms. Kyle, I'll take you to your assignment."

Grateful to have something to do, she agreed to the task.


	9. Work Assignments

**The Jolly Roger**

Regina and Snow were busy swabbing the deck. When the Captain was saw the mess that was made, he demanded that Emma and Fiona be woken up and made to clean the deck before breakfast was served. Knowing the condition they were in mere hours ago, Regina offered to switch assignments with her daughter and Snow volunteered too. Cleaning with brushes by hand was tiring to say the least.

While the silence was peaceful, Snow knew she wanted to get something off of her chest. "I tried talking to Fiona yesterday, but it didn't go as expected." She looked at her stepmother, hoping to get a response, but none came.

Regina knew exactly what the younger brunette was trying to do, but she was in no mood to engage in small talk, especially with her. She refused to answer or comment, instead she continued scrubbing the stern of the deck with enough intensity to brush off the wood itself. She was here to help her daughter, not to trade notes with her former stepdaughter.

Snow shook her head at the other woman's stubbornness. Regina was obviously attempting to avoid a touchy subject and since she couldn't feign ignorance like she usually did when confronted with the uncomfortable, she was resorting to silence. _This is too important for you to ignore_ she thought. Taking a break, she got up and stretched. On account of Regina's refusal to talk, she tried a different tactic. She shared some information that would hopefully pique Regina's interest. "I didn't know it at the time, of course, but I met Fiona before. In the Enchanted Forest." She had put the pieces together last night when she was wallowing in her bunk. The time alone gave her time to recall some of her older memories, of the ones from the other land.

Suddenly, her stepmother whipped around to face Snow. She still said nothing, but her eyes revealed that she was desperate to know more.

Now that Regina was engaged with what she had to say, Snow continued. "She gotten lost in the forest when her adopted family was visiting the kingdom. Even though she was alone, she never acted afraid." Quickly doing the math she guessed, "She must have been 8. I found her injured, so I took her to the closest doctor I could find before returning her to her family." Remembering the conversation that she and Fiona had made Snow smile. "She was incredibly smart and very opinionated about doing the right thing." In fact, Fiona tried to explain to her why accepting help from a bandit was wrong and then gave Snow some 'honestly earned' money. She had never met a child that age that grasped nuances so well.

A brief smile appeared on Regina's mouth before her neutral expression came back on. She allowed herself to feel a bit of pride that her daughter's intelligence and morals had left an impression. Still, that small amount of happiness was overshadowed by the fact that her daughter was ripped from her and given to some unknown strangers. Curious to get some information on the people who sheltered her, Regina asked. "Did you ever find out where she was from?"

"Her aunt and cousins were visiting from Isen. Fiona had mentioned that they were seeking trade agreements with the kingdoms, including yours." Snow didn't know if her stepmother would remember Fiona's aunt as the Queen must have seen countless people through the years.

Regina's face dropped at Snow's words. Putting the pieces together, she realized when this encounter happened. She remembered the red headed woman all too well. They had finished their negotiations a day before when the woman requested an emergency meeting with her. The distraught woman begged and offered some prized stallions. Since horses from that far kingdom were highly esteemed and valued, Regina saw the visiting noble and made arrangements for some of her knights to hunt for the foreigner's niece. Once it was reported to her that girl found her way back, the Queen never gave it another thought.

Contemplating those facts about Fiona and her aunt, it dawned on her that she missed another opportunity to discover her daughter. This time, though, it was in Storybrooke. When she tried to keep the deputy in town to avoid having her injured from the curse, she enlisted Fiona's aunt to lie to the girl. If she had only met the woman in person she could've put two and two together, but she had opted to do everything over the phone.

She realized how she twice missed the opportunity to reunite with her daughter. The very thought sickened her.

Seeing the emotions place openly on her face, Snow attempted to comfort her. "We had no way of knowing that she was still alive."

Regina narrowed her eyes at the statement. Her heart wasn't letting her off the hook that easily. _I should've known. I'm her mother._

**Secondary Cargo Hold**

Belle was washing and mending clothes for The Jolly Roger's crew on one of the smaller rooms used for cargo. It had been quite awhile since she had used a washboard, but within the first hour she was back into the routine and rhythm of it. _Not quite what I imagined_ she reflected. When she decided that she wanted to try and help Rumpelstiltskin she had imagined that she would've been utilized in a different manner. Since helping get Storybrooke back together in the wake of Snow White and Prince Charming's absence, she had started to become accustom to taking a leadership role. With the support of Ruby and some others, she had gained some trust and responsibilities with the townspeople who were wary of her association with Mr. Gold.

Even though she had no love for Regina, Belle couldn't help but appreciate how well organized she ran things. She wondered how the woman took care of everything so relatively well. Perhaps the curse assisted with it, who knew? For the time being, she felt no need to sit down and chat with the former mayor about town administration.

The first order of business was creating a democratic town council body to delegate the responsibilities of maintaining essential services. Seven members, including herself were voted into power. It felt right having a diverse background of people sharing power. When she left, she appointed Ruby in her place until the next election. She couldn't wait any longer- she had to see her love and help him honor his beloved Bae by rescuing Henry. And so here she was, happy knowing that it was the right choice for her.

"Do you mind if I come in?" She stopped her work when she saw Rumple entering the room. He had stayed in the guest cabin most of the morning, reviewing the maps and notes that Belle had brought over. Missing her, he decided to visit her and have some lunch together.

"What are you doing here?" Belle happily asked.

"I was hoping you'd be in the mood to join me for lunch?" He extended his hand and she stood up, kissing him on the lips.

"I'd love that." She beamed.

The two made it to the galley and after seeing the chaos, they agreed they'd take their lunch back in the cabin. Working up the line, Rumple let out a hearty laugh at the sight right in front of him. Regina and Snow White were working together, serving food to the crew. While Snow was trying admirably to appear happy to be there, her stepmother had the completely opposite reaction as she looked like she'd rather be anywhere but there. While Belle was served by Snow, Gold took advantage of Regina's discomfort by starting a conversation while she plated his lunch. "Should I be worried about poison slipping into my meal today?" He teased.

His former protege rolled her eyes and shoved the plate to him. "Here's your lunch. Keep the line moving."

Belle gave him a look and he dropped it. The two made it to their cabin and started enjoying the humble meal before them - some type of gumbo, a piece of bread, and water to wash it down.

"Who would've thought I'd missed Granny's frozen lasagna?" He casually remarked.

Belle laughed. "I'm going to tell her you said that when we get back."

"Just make sure I'm not there when you do." Besides his love for Belle and his connection with Henry, he had no positive feelings for anyone else in the town. He tolerated Ruby's grandmother simply because the old woman showed hospitality to his beloved. He had no desire to hear her crow about how he liked her food.

Encouraged by the lightness of the mood, the two continued their conversation and enjoyed a private date without any interruptions.

**Cargo Hold**

Fiona realized quickly how little she actually knew about assembling barrels. Since she had done this as a child and she had professionals around her, she assumed that she retained the skills, much like riding a bike after spending a few years off. Unfortunately for her, it was more like she was on a bike and people had been pushing her along and now she was forced to ride it by herself for the first time. Cursing at the misshapen barrel, she kicked it away.

Simon for his part was shaking his head, quietly getting another barrel ready.

"Having troubles Ms. Kyle?" Captain Hook asked as he leaned against the doorway with his arms crossed. He had been watching her with this last one and was quite amused at her attempts.

"It looks I'm rustier than I thought." She admitted. "I'll get it done in time"

"Good, I appreciate it. Besides checking up on your progress, though, I wanted to talk to you regarding rooming arrangements. Since you're doing quite well on your recovery, I'm going to have to you move out of our med room. Our doctor would like to have his bed back."

That was monkey wrench in her plans. She had hoped at least for a few more days. "Where am I going to sleep tonight?"

"Well, here's the great thing, Ms. Kyle, you have some many options. I think any of my crew would love to have a beautiful lady join them in one of the rooms." She shook her head no as soon as he made the suggestion. "Or you can stay in one of the guest quarters, which are also occupied, but with people you're more familiar with."

Trying to weigh her choices, she inquired, "Who's sleeping where?"

"The Crocodile and Belle are in the cabin furthest back. Emma and her parents have the one in the middle, and Regina has the cabin by the stairs. "

None of those options sounded appealing to her. While she and Belle were traveling companions and had started a friendship while in Storybrooke, her skin crawled thinking about being so close to The Dark One. The cabin with Mary Margaret would no doubt be tight and awkward. And after their clash, she doubted Regina would be alright with having her as a bunkmate.

Hook watched her mentally review her options. He thought it would be a fairly simple choice - either get in with the do-gooders on the middle cabin or get more space by bunking in Regina's cabin. While either one would work, he hoped she would choose the latter. "Don't tell me you're thinking of joining Rumpelstiltskin?" He teased.

She scrunched up her face at the mere thought. "No!"

He unfolded his arms. It was time for him to be more direct. "It's not that hard Fiona. Why won't you stay with Regina?" She was being stubborn and he wanted to know why.

"I think if you asked her, she would say no."

"Actually, I already have and I know for a fact she would be most pleased to have you as a bunkmate." It was a white lie, but he was determined to at least get these two talking again.

"With all due respect captain, I think I know her better than you do"

_I see where she got her stubbornness from_ he mused. Looking at Simon, he kindly ordered, "Why don't you go for a long lunch?" Not needing to be told twice, the bald man happily left his work. Even though they were alone, he still lowered his voice when speaking to her, "I think you believe you know your mother from your limited time in Storybrooke, but there are huge gaps about her that you don't even realize."

She folded her arms, ready to be challenged. "Then enlighten me."

He wasn't sure if he should speak about certain private matters with her, but knowing that Regina would rather have her daughter talking to her than avoiding her, he gave it a go. "What I'm about to say, I better not hear repeated. Ever. Do you understand?"

She nodded, curious and scared about what he was about to reveal.

"Before coming to Storybrooke, I spent time with a woman named Cora. Do you know her?"

Fiona had never heard of the name. "No."

"She's your grandmother on your mom's side." She raised her eyebrow at this information, Regina mentioned visiting her father at the cemetery, but said nothing about her mother. He continued. "Very long story short - she wasn't mother of the year. She came to Storybrooke for one thing only - to reunite with her daughter."

She didn't see anything wrong with that plan. "That sounds sweet."

"No, dear. She didn't come with open arms and kisses. She did her best to break Regina, even going as far as framing her for Archie's murder." He was personally disgusted at seeing her go around town, systematically destroying what little happiness her daughter had. Had he not been so obsessed on his revenge, he would've stopped her from doing that damage. He was ashamed at his behavior. "Look, I'm not going to get into the nitty, gritty details, but Cora was ruthless, not an ounce of mercy for daughter. How she behaved in Storybrooke was just a tip of the iceberg. She herself was an apprentice of The Dark One. Just think about how someone would be affected by a cruel soul."

That thought made her uncomfortable, but he forged ahead. "Ask anyone on this ship and while they will readily admit that your mother has done some terrible things in her life, not one of them would doubt her love as a mother."

Fiona had no idea what he wanted her to do - forgive and forget, like nothing was wrong between them or was she supposed to pity the woman? "You're telling me all this so I will share a room with her?"

"No, I'm telling you this, because I want you to realize that your mother has made bad choices and will still stumble from time to time. However know that she cares for you deeply. When she lashes out and pushes people away it's not because she wants to, but it's what she had been raised with. It's not an excuse, it's just an explanation. I'm asking you to give her a chance to tell her side of things. Who knows, you may find that you have more in common with her than you thought." He wasn't going to say anymore about Cora. When Regina was ready she could tell her own daughter about her.

Mulling over Hook's words, Fiona was willing to at least try. "Fine. I'll stay with Regina."

"Good! I'll have your bag and stuff moved and let you get back to your work then." He was feeling pretty proud of himself. The captain found Regina to be a kindred spirit - someone with a past that was too dark to dwell on, but was trying to be a better person. Hook had no idea if he would get any happiness in his life again, but he could at least help Regina as a part of his penance.


	10. Crash

**The Jolly Roger**

Regina thought some rest before supper would do her well. After finishing up with cleaning the deck I the morning and working in the kitchen, she was aching and in need of some time alone. She was not accustomed to hard labor, so she was more exhausted than most of the other passengers.

As she opened the door to the cabin, she noticed that someone had already been in her tiny room. It was a mess, with items strewn all around - a pair of boots by the door, some bottles on the table, and clothes jammed into one of the makeshift she browsed her cabin again, she saw on the bunk opposite of hers was Fiona's green duffel bag, unzipped and mostly empty. She was amazed that her 11 year old son was more organized and neater than his much older sister.

She also found a bag and a plastic container on her bunk. Walking to them to get a closer look, she saw that there was a vacuum sealed bag with clothes inside and the plastic box had toiletries inside. She remembered Snow had telling her that Fiona had bought care packages from Storybrooke.

Guess these are mine she figured and opened up the bag to inspect the clothes. While not exactly the timeless pieces that she preferred to wear, they were more appropriate for the environment that they were now in. Upon closer examination she noticed that the clothes were very similar in style to the clothes she wore when she first apprenticed with Rumple, with the pants and vest being black instead of the brown she wore. These pieces were obviously hand made, no store in her town she knew sold these types of outfits. She was curious as to how her daughter had gotten them.

Suddenly the ship violently shook and not even a moment later, it stopped and the force jerked her off balance, causing her to fall to the floor. Getting herself back up, she heard commotion and went out of her room. The hallway was busy and she saw Snow and her husband moving towards the stairs. David stopped when she saw her, "Are you alright?"

Uncomfortable with his concern she stated, "Yes, I'm fine. What happened?"

Snow answered, "We're heading up to find out."

Regina followed the couple upstairs and found the deck in a different kick of mess than this morning. Men were running around, trying to steady the ship. Everyone was yelling so for about a few minutes it was pretty hard to get a clear picture as to what was going on. She found Hook walking the rail on the side of the ship, using a rope to keep him from falling into the water. He appeared to be inspecting something.

"What's going on?!" She heard Emma yelling from behind her. The blond was coming up the stairs.

"It looks like the ship is damaged Ms. Swan. We're waiting to hear from the captain." The two women went closer to the scene of action, hoping to get more details.

Unable to resist putting on the charm, even in these circumstances, Hook swung from the rope and suavely landed on the deck. "Crisis averted for now ladies." The duo rolled their eyes at the address, but remained there to get the rest of the story. "It seems that we have hit a rock though I don't know why since the waters were clear."

"Perhaps Captain, you need to get some glasses." Regina teased.

He leaned in. "No milady, I can assure you that my eyesight is still as sharp as ever."

"Fiona!" Snow yelled and Regina immediately forgot about the captain and looked to see her daughter walking towards them with her shirt blotched with blood. She also noted that Rumple was right behind her, looking delighted about something. She felt a shiver.

"I'm alright." The young woman quickly explained seeing the concerned looks from the others. "When the ship crashed the tools and the barrels flew around. Simon got hit so I took him to the med room. Addressing Captain Hook, she informed him, "He's a bit battered, but the doctor says he should be alright. Some others of the crew were injured, mostly minor. Belle is assisting him." She gave a brief smile at Regina.

"Good, good. Thank you for the report, Ms. Kyle. We ran into a boulder, but we're trying to figure out how-"

The ground started to shake and the ship seem to have been lifted up. The exasperated captain went over to the stern side of the ship and cursed. David and Snow looked over the rail once they joined him and saw the problem. In just a matter of seconds the surface below the sea pushed up. The Jolly Roger was partially out of the water. "We're stuck!" He growled and smashed his good hand against the closet wall.

"I may be able to assist with that." Gold calmly informed the captain. Giving him space, the others stepped back. His face grimacing with the sheer effort required and slowly the ground below lowered and the ship slipped back into the water. Taking advantage of the situation, Hook ordered his men to the ship to just outside the unpredictable terrain. He needed time to figure out what was going on and having so many eyes on him wasn't going to help. He announced to the crew, "For now, everyone get back to their stations if you haven't finished your assignments."

Everyone nodded their heads in acknowledgment and started dispersing to their respective places. Looking at her mother, Fiona said. "I'm going to clean up the cargo hold, but I'll meet you once I'm done."

"Good." She definitely wanted to talk to her. As the young woman disappeared to the decks below, Regina felt a hand on her shoulder. Hook spoke to her. "I'd like you and Rumpelstiltskin to meet me in my cabin in about 1/2 hour."

**Captain Hook's Quarters**

It had been 30 minutes and the captain was still not there. Regina and Rumpelstiltskin stood outside the doors to his quarters. The two were watching each other.

Gold's smirk was making her irritated. He was happy about something and the only thing she knew was that it wasn't about Belle. No, there was something rapacious behind his expression.

He knew Regina better than anyone else on the ship and he could tell that she was ready to jump out of her skin to find out what he knew. Ever since he had taken her on as an apprentice, she had always been impatient with her lessons, wanting to know what he knew. Considering how fiendishly difficult Cora was once she acquired magic, Rumple was more careful with Regina. Even though his lessons may have seen spontaneous at times, everything was painstakingly planned. He gave her just enough to guide her to the path he need her to follow.

When she grew more independent and tried her own methods, he meticulously maneuvered things behind the scenes to prepare her to be capable of casting the dark curse. Now he saw her eyeing him with suspicion and he knew exactly what she was worried about. Cora had the same look on her when he tried to claim Regina as his payment back when she was an infant. Like a lioness, Cora jealously guarded her little one and for the time being, he gave her that tiny victory.

Knowing that even he couldn't operate on this ship with her completely in the dark, he went ahead and spoke. "I may have been wrong about your daughter."

Her dark brown eyes grew wide at hearing his words. "What do you mean?"

Maintaining his neutral voice, he elaborated. "When I saw how the jump to Neverland almost killed her, I had assumed that she would never be able to make another jump, with her body being drained." He had mistakenly underestimated the young woman. Perhaps seeing Belle again had distracted him from looking at Fiona in greater detail. Whatever the reason, he wasn't going to make the same mistake again. "All magic has its limits and it looked as she had reached hers."

Regina finished his thought for him. "And now you feel otherwise." A knot was beginning to form in her stomach.

"Belle and I were in the cargo hold with her as the crash happened. She was able to repel some objects away from her. " Everything happened so fast that someone else would've dismissed what they had seen, but not him. He had spent centuries searching and training those with various abilities. He had honed himself to pick up on the smallest of details and to pluck up these ones before anyone else corrupted them. What he saw in the cargo hold gave him hope. He was worried that they would remain stuck in Neverland once they rescued Henry, but now there was a chance that they could get back home. "With some proper training, she may be able to get us back to Storybrooke." Knowing the reaction he was going to get, Gold steeled himself for her fury.

Regina walked right up to him, her face only a few inches from his. "Stay away from my daughter. If you as much as give her a greeting, I will destroy you. "

"You expect me to ignore a once in a lifetime opportunity? You must not know me as well as I thought." He laughs. There is no way he intends to follow that command and he isn't going to give her the impression that he will. "No dearie. I'm not going to let us be forever marooned here in Neverland. If you want to stay here with your children and the rogue, that is you business. Mine is elsewhere." He enjoyed ribbing her about the captain. He had seen how the two had spent time talking to another and nonverbal cues they were sending to each other. "Your daughter may be the key to us getting home." While he wasn't certain she could achieve the goal or survive the jump, he was certain that she was their best bet.

Using the one card she could play, Regina opened,"I'd like to make a deal."

He hadn't expected that. "Usually both parties must have something they want to start negotiations. What are you offering me?"

"Protection for Belle."

He clenched his jaw, thinking that she was going to threaten his beloved again.

"You can't be everywhere, but with my help, Belle can be kept safe." She loathed saying the words, but she was desperate. She had to protect her child from him. Gold looked at her and Regina could see that he was giving serious consideration to her proposal. She continued to sell the deal."You yourself said that Peter Pan was someone we should all fear. That means Belle's life is in danger. I give you my word that I will do my best to keep her alive and well."

"All for me to stay away from Fiona?" Gold knew that he'd need another pair of eyes on Belle. She had a kind-heart and could foolishly jump into danger just to help others. There was no one else on the ship with the same abilities than his former protege. That didn't mean that he was going to all together drop his chance at going home once this ordeal was over. "No, I will not agree to this deal."

Her mind was scrambling for something else she could pitch to him, when the master dealer gave a counter offer. " I will allow you to train your daughter in exchange for Belle's 'll have control over your teaching methods, but you have to make an honest attempt at showing her how to harness her abilities." Now it was her turn to consider the offer on the table. It wasn't what she hope for, but there was enough room in the deal for her to buy some time and get a better plan. Extending her hand, she accepted. "Deal."

They shook hands,both only partially pleased with what the other was giving, but happy to have their respected loved ones protected.

Captain Hook finally made an appearance. "Sorry I'm late." He directed it more at Regina, but it didn't hurt to stay on Rumpelstiltskin's good side. Opening the door to his room, he cleared some space at his desk and rolled out the map that he held in his hand. The two look over his shoulder and saw that it was a sketch of the island near them and that they notations and numbers scribbled across it. "We did a general survey of the area, looking for a possible path that avoided the barrier to the island. None could be found."

Regina frowned. "So we have to wait until our next stop before we can get supplies?"

"Unfortunately we no longer have that luxury. When we hit the rocks, there were cracks formed on the hull and some water leaked in. We just discovered it 10 minutes ago. A fair amount of our dry goods are wet. Considering our path here, even if we stretch our meals, we may not be able to make it to our next stop. We have to find some food on the island."

"Well how are we going to there then?" She was increasingly unhappy with the news she was hearing.

He answered. "Row boats. We sent one out to get some information for this crude map and discovered that it didn't trigger an eruption." Hating to ask for The Crocodile anything, but knowing he was necessary to their entire mission, he asked, "Do you think you can clear a path so we can get closer? I'd hate to have the row boats leave from here, it would take a couple of hours to get to the land. That wouldn't give them much time to scout before it got dark. "

Considering what he knew, Rumple took about a minute to get things sorted in his mind. "I believe that I can clear a path somewhat closer, but you must then immediately pull back to beyond the barrier once the row boats are launched. It's going to take an incredible amount of strength."

It wasn't what Captain Hook wanted to hear, but he would work with that plan. "It appears that the scouting parties will be on their own then." he sighed. "Very well, then that is what we will have to do." He looked at Regina. "I'm going to need you to organize the scouting parties. Hopefully we can find everything that we need." She nodded. "I'll have everything ready by tonight. "

"Perfect. You two are dismissed." While neither appreciated being ordered around, they both recognized the situation at hand. With that, the trio parted to get ready for their evening meal.


	11. Listen to Me

**A/N:: Big, big thanks to carriemarie78 for helping me with this chapter! She's been so incredible with the feedback, patiently reading the rough drafts. Just a heads up, while you don't have to read the story to get the gist, I reference the end of Welcome to the Mad House.**

**The Jolly Roger - Guest Cabin**

After she cleared up the mess in the cargo hold with Emma's help, Fiona returned to her cabin to change into clean clothes as the blood on her shirt had started to dry. She was looking forward to (and at the same time dreading) having another shot at catching up with her mother. Their last attempt at bonding went horribly wrong, pushing them away from one another. She hoped that the two of them could find a way to have conversations end on better terms.

Coming inside their shared space, the hazel-eyed brunette immediately picked up that all of her things had been moved. The cabin was perfectly neat with nothing out of place. She was planning on asking her roommate about where to put everything, but she could see it already done for her. She suppressed the urge to complain out loud about having her things touched. Perhaps her mother moved her possessions as a favor to her, to get on her good side.

Speaking of Regina, she was sitting at the table writing in a notebook, apparently working on something for the crew and preparing some sort of list. Fiona tried to see more, but by the look on Regina's face, she knew that the older woman wanted to talk to her. She had no idea about what, but the usually stoic woman looked bothered by something.

"Is everything alright?" Fiona asked.

"Could you please close the door behind you?" After she complied with the request, Regina delved right into the question. "We have a huge problem. Since you came to Neverland, have you used magic?"

Realizing she had been seen in the cargo hold, she admitted. "Yes." There was no need to elaborate; it was the only time she had used it since recovering. She hadn't intended on employing magic, it was an instinctual move to protect herself from the chaos that was all around her. "Why? Is it a big deal?" Fiona had assumed that her family knew that she used her abilities to get to the land. According to the Blue Fairy, it was the reason why she was abducted when she was in an infant.

It amazed Regina to see how little her daughter understood the gravity of the situation. "Rumpelstiltskin saw you use magic and now he's intrigued." She couldn't hide the anxiety that she felt. She had seen how he used people who had some talent or circumstance that interested him and who could give him what he wanted. The good news was that with the deal she made with him, Regina bought some time so she could prepare her daughter.

Based on their history she knew that he would honor the deal to the letter, but the imp would find some way, some loophole, to get what he wanted. Now that he saw that Fiona could be of a potential use to him, he'd keep poking around to find out more. It was his nature. "At some point he'll approach you with some deal to train or work with him. You can not accept."

Fiona shrugged at what she said and offered the obvious solution. "I'll just say no." She had no interest in learning magic; it had never really done her any good in the long run. Even with her limited knowledge about The Dark One, she certainly wasn't going to apprentice with someone who corrupted her mother and ruined her family for his own gain. She was a grown woman, she knew better.

Regina shook her head at her daughter's ignorance. _She has no idea who she is dealing with._ She took on a patronizing tone, slipping into the protective mother role. "It's not that easy. He's not going to just come up to you ask directly." Reminiscing about how he approached her right before her wedding to King Leopold, she warned her daughter, "He's going to wait until he finds you in a desperate moment and he will exploit it. He'll trick you into joining with him." She had been seduced into trying out magic with the offer of being rid of her mother Cora. Seeing her daughter in front of her, she wondered if history would repeat itself. She shook away the dreadful thought once she realized it was her own insecurity rather than actual history that fueled the fear.

Hearing the fear in her mother's voice made Fiona uneasy. No one had ever given her the specifics, all she had was pieces of secondhand knowledge and Jefferson's take on things. She wondered if there was more to Rumpelstiltskin and her family than what she had been told. Unable to imagine that her mother was ever in such a hopeless situation that she'd fall for The Dark One's deal, Fiona asked, "Is that what happened to you?" Her curiosity was killing her; she wanted to know and she wanted to hear it from Regina.

Finding it hard to even admit this tidbit of her background, Regina answered. "Yes." She had no plans in opening up with her daughter about such complicated and, in her heart, shameful details. Try as she might, Regina couldn't find a way to succinctly explain the situation without releasing the floodgates and having her history retold. It was horrible enough the first time when she had to live through it. She didn't want to dissect and analyze it.

Not letting her mother slide, Fiona continue to seek a real answer from her. "I heard Jefferson's side. He told you agreed to train to get revenge on Snow. Is that true?" When she had heard it, the explanation rang hollow in her heart. She didn't have all the pieces, but she figured that there had to be a better reason that.

Regina scoffed at her former collaborator's take on things. "Jefferson?! He was mad even before the curse brought him over. You shouldn't believe a word he says." She knew Fiona had been infatuated with the hatter, finding him attractive and alluring. She wondered what else he told the impressionable girl.

Fiona saw an opening and took it. Using her own mother's words against her, she argued, "You're right, I shouldn't take what he said at face value." She gestured with an open palm at her. " I'd like to hear your side."

Regina balked at how easily Fiona twisted her words. "That's enough! We can catch up on trivial matters later. But for now I need you to listen to me."

Eager to understand the enigma of her mother, Fiona pressed. "What was it? How did he convince you to become his apprentice?"

The pleading look Fiona gave Regina made her feel uncomfortable. She was not used to sharing her past with someone without getting some sort of judgment or criticism so she flicked her hands to push away the question. "That's not important. What is important is that you listen to me and stay away from him." She couldn't take the chance of Fiona misunderstanding and getting hurt. Grabbing her exasperated daughter by the arms, she entreated her. "Promise me."

She rolled her eyes at her mother, furious that she was being treated like a child. "I heard you loud and clear the first time - stay away from Gold and any deals. Got it."

Satisfied with her daughter's vow, Regina gave a small smile, but her daughter didn't see it as she was still fuming over being chided and not having her question answered.

Regina watched for a few minutes as her daughter paced angrily around the room. "You're mad."

_You're right I'm mad. You're an insufferable woman at times!_ Fiona thought, but kept her mouth shut. As much as she wanted to yell at the woman in front of her right now, she couldn't. Part of her still sought to at least maintain some peace with Regina. She finally spoke. "I'm not mad. I'm just…. frustrated. With you." Her heart rate slowed back down to normal as she calmed herself.

Glad to have that unpleasant business out of the way, she then went ahead and changed her shirt. She tossed her stained shirt in the corner, leaving her with a black tank underneath. She opened a few of the drawers until she found the one with her shirts. With her back turned to Regina, she couldn't help but notice some scars. Some were pretty much faded away while a couple were more recent, still healing. The biggest one started at her daughter's right should blade and moved diagonally for about a few inches. "What happened?"

"Excuse me?" Fiona spun around to see what her mother was talking about.

"How did you get hurt?" She tried to step closer to get a better look, but the headstrong woman blocked her. She was in no mood to share the various stories behind them.

Feeling self-conscious, Fiona mumbled. "It's nothing." She quickly finished putting on her shirt.

It was obviously something in Regina's eyes and she wasn't going to let it go. "If someone hurt you, then I should know." It made her furious to think that someone had laid a hand on her daughter.

"Wait, what?" Fiona said in disbelief. She didn't know why on earth Regina jumped to that conclusion. Whatever the reason, she didn't want to talk about it, even with Regina looking straight at her, obviously troubled. "Let's discuss something else."

Regina was getting more disturbed, taking her daughter's reluctance as a sign that she was covering up to protect whoever had done this to her. "I can help."

"There's nothing for you to help with. No one hurt me." She cut off her mother's objections. "I'm done talking about it." Her voice was firm; she wasn't going to budge.

While that the last thing she wanted to do, Regina respected her daughter's wishes. "Very well."

Already agitated with how things were going, Fiona wanted to finish up the other topic that Regina was so eager to discuss. Resting her hands on her hips, she reminded her, "You mentioned you wanted to talk to me about two things. What was the other matter?" Her tone was annoyed as she had a feeling it was going to be disagreeable as the one the had just finished.

While Regina felt completely justified with getting her daughter to see her side of things with Rumpelstiltskin, she found herself hesitant about discussing the other question on her mind. She was nervously rubbing her hands as she spoke. "As you may have seen, the room is bit more presentable as I was put away your possessions."

It was obvious as soon as she came it that all of her things were no longer spread out everywhere. "Um, thank you?" She looked at the older woman strangely as she had no idea why her mother bothered to point that out. There had to be something else.

"Well, your wallet fell out of the duffel bag." When Fiona started to ask about it, Regina pointed to the bunk." Don't worry dear, it's in the drawer below your bed."

Fiona raised her brow, still confused as to where this was going.

"As I was saying….It was opened, so when I picked it up, I saw your license. It had Shaw as your last name." She cleared her throat, apprehensive as she knew she was venturing on shaky grounds.

_Ah, there it was._ Fiona knew what her mother was trying to ask but she had no desire to make it any easier. After that lecture about getting to know one another being a secondary goal, she refused to answer. She just glared at the woman in front of her.

Regina saw her daughter stare at her and felt both embarrassed to have to ask the question and annoyed at her daughter's silent treatment. "I wanted to ask you if that is your married name or if you took on an alias since leaving Storybrooke." She hated surprises and reading that card certainly threw her for a small loop. She had no idea why Fiona came back and it was eating at her.

A snicker escaped the guarded woman's mouth upon hearing her mother's words. "I thought you said we would talk about these 'trivial matters' later?"

Regina sighed. "You know what I meant." She couldn't figure out why her daughter was being difficult.

"Unbelievable." Fiona bit the side of her mouth, bothered by both the personal nature of the question and how it came about. She addressed the latter. "So you went through my things?"

Regina "No dear. I just said that wallet fell and-"

"And I'm supposed to believe that?" She shook her head, unable to comprehend why on earth her mother would think it would be acceptable to snoop around her personal items. "You have some nerve - not answering my questions, but all too eager to dig around to find out things about me." Accepting that Regina would keep asking until she got a response, she angrily answered her. "Just so you know, that was my married name." Saying that out loud was more difficult that she had expected. Unintentionally she cast her eyes downward, recalling the events that lead her back to mustered all her strength to stop herself from crying. Not in front of her.

Regina didn't miss the fact that Fiona had used past tense when describing her marriage. By her daughter's expression she could see the turmoil was still raw. She had loved him, still loved him in fact. As badly as she wanted to ask, she knew that now was not the time to inquire. It bothered her to have to resort to this semi-formal inquiry to find out about her own daughter's life. Trying to be civil, she kept her tone even. "Despite what you think, I'm not spying on you. It was an accident."

The fiery young woman was envious at how easily her mother mastered this stoic expression. It was as if she could throw up those walls at the flick of the wrist, making it impossible to read her. Fiona wished she could learn how to do that. All her life she had apparently been an open book, her emotions dancing across her face, unable to hide how she truly felt. While some had told her it was an endearing trait, she found it to be a huge liability.

Angry that her mother was able to get what she wanted while she still got no answer to her original question, Fiona did the next best thing to screaming; she grabbed the notebook Regina had been using earlier and threw it across the cabin. "Don't you dare touch my things without permission!"

Stinging at the insulting tone and immature behavior, Regina got defensive. "I never pried. I simply made an observation. You have a different name on your license and I just wanted to know why." The former deputy was overacting, just as she had done years ago when Regina first met her in Storybrooke. She couldn't help but mutter, "You'd think you'd learn to control your temper by now."

"That's funny, because I wasn't having any problems with my temper until I came back." That wasn't entirely true, but she wasn't thinking straight and she didn't want Regina feel like she was in the right.

"Then why did you?!" She snapped. Allowing her fears to get the best of her, she continued. "Why come back after 15 years? After lying to me, to Mary Margaret, to everyone?!" She spent the last couple of days trying to sort out the whys and hows and she had concluded that it was because of her. Just like it was her fault that Henry left to be with his biological family the first chance he got and she was left alone.

Ashamed at what she did, Fiona looked down. She wasn't going to give some lame excuse.

With her daughter a captive audience, Regina let out how she felt, unfiltered. "Were you waiting for the curse to break? What that your plan? Where you just biding your time until the Evil Queen was gone?" She mockingly asked. Ever since it was broken, she was constantly reminded by others of her past, of her mistakes. It didn't take much imagination for her to assume that her daughter was in that camp. No doubt fueled by what she heard from others.

"Yes…wait, no!" Fiona was forced to confront her conflicting feelings. "I left Storybrooke for a lot reasons. I'm not going to lie, I did want the Curse to break, but one reason I left because I didn't want to see you hurt."

"What? You left to protect me?" She was incredulous at what she had just heard, it was like a slap to the face. "Well, you failed." She rubbed her temples like she was dealing with a headache, but it was a way for Regina to stealthily wipe tears that had fell.

Fiona sharply exhaled, as if she had just been punched in the gut. Not understanding what hurt her mother was referring to and seeing as they would never get back to their home in Maine where Regina could harm him, Fiona tried to explain and shared her old flame's role. "Jefferson was hell bent on ending the curse. He kept pushing me to betray you, to find some way of getting the curse broken."

Tired, she went to the storage bin on the back wall and sat on it. "I knew I couldn't do that. So I…left." Pushing her hand through her hair she exhaled, relieved of a weight that had been on her for years. She had been pulled by two people she had loved at the time to cut off the other. Looking at her mother, she realized she made the wrong choice. But back then she was a scared kid, afraid of confronting the truth of who she was and couldn't go back in time to fix it. What was done was done.

The two women sat in silence for a minute, each lost in their own thoughts. Fiona was grappling with trying to cope with the guilt she was feeling about abandoning everyone she knew and cared for in Storybrooke. What made perfect sense years ago, now seemed impulsive and hurtful.

Regina in the meantime, was dealing with her demons about being abandoned. Even though it stung to having people leave her, it was something she was used to. But to have someone come back, that was a big unknown. When Henry chose her in the mines, she was stunned. Knowing that he reciprocated her love was the greatest gift she had felt at that point. Now with her daughter back in her life, in the flesh, she wanted to know how she felt.

Being more experienced with having jumbled and opposing emotions, Regina temporarily pushed them aside in her heart so she could speak. She cleared her throat to get her daughter's attention. "If you left to spare me, then why did you come back?" That had been the burning question she needed answered as soon as knew that her beloved daughter was alive.

Fiona shrugged, not out of indifference or rudeness, but she couldn't articulate how she felt into words. She settled on a partial truth. "I missed my family." She covered her eyes with the palm of her hands, disappointed at her own behavior and vague explanation.

Regina was going to accept the explanation, speculating that the young woman was referring to her adoptive family in town but then she heard Fiona suppress a sob. "Fiona, what is it?" Directed by maternal instinct, she walked over and sat by her daughter. When Fiona raised her eyes up again, she saw that they were filled with tears.

The emotionally spent woman tried to summon up the last bit of dignity and poise she could. "That's not the whole truth." She glanced at her feet as way to cope with the discomfort of being vulnerable. "I came back to Storybrooke because I lost everything."

Regina instinctively took her hand to wipe away Fiona's tears and embraced her. The cathartic release of emotions long buried were starting to catch up with the devastated woman. She divulged the truth with her face buried in Regina's shoulders. "You're the only family I have left."

The older brunette squeezed her daughter tight, for both Fiona's and her sake.


	12. Sleepless Among the Stars

**The Jolly Roger - Guest Cabin**

_Glancing at the mirror she saw herself wearing a magnificent was Queen again, but instead of having servants scurrying around, she was by herself in the Palace._

_Regina heard the cries of a baby, distant, but distinct. Following the sounds she made her way down the main hallway, still empty. As she approached her bed chambers she noticed that the lanterns were on and the room was the source of the wails, now loud._

_Walking in the room, she saw an infant lying in the middle of the enormous bed, wailing, as if she were trying to escape from her plum tinted swaddle. She instantly recognized her daughter Rose Red._

_She tenderly picked her up and her daughter ceased crying. Tiny grey eyes stared up at her and Regina gently patted down her newborn daughter's tuft of hair._

_"She is certainly the fairest of them all, isn't she?" Rumpelstiltskin's tone and voice were unmistakable. Regina spun around to face him. The imp was back to his golden crocodile appearance, intimidating and unpredictable. "What are you doing here?!"_

_"I came to take what's mine dearie." He held his hands out, expecting her to relinquish her child to him._

_She panicked. "No! Stay away from her, she's not yours." She gestured to summon a fireball to attack him with, but none came._

_"That's not going to happen. Hand me Rose and everyone will be for the better." Her mentor reprimanded her. "Surely you don't think you're a fit enough mother, do you?" He tilted his head and pretended to think about the notion._

_"Listen you twisted little imp; I will not give her to you. Not now, not ever."_

_"You should be more grateful. I'm doing you a favor. You can't very well cast The Dark Curse with your daughter around, can you?" He giggled. "She deserves better than what you can offer." He waved his hand and Rose Red vanished out of her arms._

_"What did you do?" She frantically searched the room."Where is she?!" But he was already gone, his laugh echoing from somewhere else in the palace. Seeing as her baby was not in room, she went to find him. Even with out magic she was determined to stop him from taking her._

_Hunting him down, she found Rumpelstiltskin in one of the smaller libraries watching a toddler make a wobbly walk towards him. He opened his arms and gave a large smile. "Come to papa." The toddler with wavy black hair and now hazel eyes squealed and pick up the pace._

_Right before the two met, Regina swooped in and grabbed her daughter. Whereas earlier Rose was content in her arms, the queen struggled to keep her child from squirming out._

_"No one steals from me!" He bellowed. He raised his right hand and several of the books left their places on the shelves. "I'm going to ask you again, give me my property. "_

_She locked her eyes with his, her voice forceful and her words deliberate. "She doesn't belong to you, she is my child. I'll protect her if it's the last thing I do."_

_"If you insist." He threw his hand in her direction and a swarm of books came towards her and Rose. Putting the toddler down behind her, she blocked the attack as best she could. Opening her eyes again, she saw him enraged. "Look at what you've done. Now neither of us have her!"_

_He was right, somehow her daughter left the room on her own. Regina resumed her search around the castle, racing to find Rose before the imp did._

_Out of the corner of her eyes she saw a small figure dart from room to room. "Rose!"_

_Hearing her name, the little girl stopped to look at her mother. She was kindergarten age, petite and with her hair braided up."Catch me if you can mama!" She yelled and ran again, this time heading down the stairs._

_"Come back!" She instructed, but to no avail. Chasing after her fleeing child she sprinted down the stone steps and through the halls once more._

_Blue was standing by the door leading to the main palace garden. "Don't worry Your Majesty. I will keep your daughter safe." She had a condescending tone that Regina didn't appreciate._

_"Get out of my way!" She instructed._

_Blocking her, Blue argued the same point the imp made in her bed chambers. "It would be best for Fiona if you stay away. The child needs a mother who can guide her to follow goodness in her heart. All you can give her is pain and darkness."_

_Hearing her daughter's adopted name riled her as she realized that was the only identity that her girl had ever known. Over her shoulder Regina spied an older child already in the garden, climbing the cherished apple tree she had bought over from her childhood home. Squinting, she saw two adults around the girl, laughing and clapping. "Let me see her! She's my daughter. You have no right to keep her from me."_

_"There's no need to do this, I've found her a good, loving home. She has a mother and father who care for her and who can give her what you can't - real love. Let her be with her parents."_

_"Her parents?" Regina was indignant at hearing those words. "She's my daughter, not theirs! You have no right to steal her from me." Fueled by fury, she pushed the fairy aside and went to the apple tree. Everyone was gone and when she tried to ask Blue where they were, she was gone as well._

_"Looking for me?" Sitting a few feet away was Fiona, exactly as Regina remembered her in Storybrooke. She had her deputy badge on, prepared for her next case. She gave Regina a carefree smile and asked, "How can I help you Madam Mayor?"_

_Relieved to be reunited, Regina kindly pointed out, "You don't have to be so formal; you're my daughter."_

_The hazel eyed brunette's cheery smile morphed into something more sinister as shook her head side to side."No, I'm not. I'm your competition."_

_Behind her, Rumpelstiltskin appeared again, cackling in her ear. "I always get what I want dearie. I own you and now I have your daughter."_

_"No!" She yelled as she wrapped her hands around his neck. Caught off guard with her attack, Regina uses her legs to get him off balanced and on the ground. She tightened her grip and he struggled for air._

_She is then knocked to the ground herself and when she looks up, Fiona has her pinned. "What are you doing?!" She shouts._

_"Helping my master." Fiona sneers. Without warning, she plunges her hand into her mother and pulls out her heart._

Alarmed, Regina woke up in a cold sweat. Half asleep and still trying to process, she wondered if in fact happened at all. To reassure herself that it was just a dream, she got up and tiptoed to double check that Fiona still asleep.

_It was just a nightmare._

She was amazed that Fiona was apparently sleeping like a rock, hardly stirring in her bunk. Not wishing to wake her up, the contemplative woman did her best to get some rest for the next day.

After an hour of tossing and turning, Regina gave up on sleeping and went to the deck to get some fresh air and some time alone to think. She put on her coat and and quietly left the cabin.

As she took the stairs up on the deck, the first thought she had was how the stars shone brightly.

"So kind of you to join me Regina." Captain Hook had a smug grin and his blue eyes beamed at her. "I knew it would be only a matter of time before we had time to ourselves." When she began to protest to his cocky remarks, he held up his hand. "It's a joke Your Majesty."

She bristled at the title. "Please don't call me that. I'm no longer the queen." The couple of months had turned her against her former moniker. It no longer was a source of pride. It had became a sore point, a painful reminder of who she used to be.

Still in a flirtatious mood, Hook complimented her. "You'll always be queen in my eyes." As Regina wasn't playing along, he changed the subject. "What brings you up to the deck at this hour?"

She was hesitant to disclose to the rogue about her daughter's abilities returning, but she then thought it might be an advantage to have someone who hated Rumple as much as she did keeping an eye on him. "Gold saw her use magic in the cargo hold when the ship hit the boulder."

Finishing her thought he said "And now he wants to work with her, I wager?" His nostrils flared thinking about the Dark One trying to entice someone on his ship.

She nodded to acknowledge his assessment. "I made a deal with him to protect Belle. In exchange, he will not try to persuade Fiona to train with him."

"Do you really think he'll keep his word Regina?" Killian personally knew how fickle the Crocodile could be with his promises. It had cost Milah her life and he no desire to see Fiona suffer the same fate.

"I don't really have much of choice." She tensed up just thinking about what the imp could do.

Captain Hook could see that former Queen was attempting to protect her oldest child and he could certainly respect that. "You'll succeeded because you'll have help." He grabbed her hands with his good one. "I promise I will do my very best to keep her protected while she is here."

"Thank you Hook." She was grateful for having someone else on her side. Regina gave him a small smile, which he was happy to accept.

However the dashing captain picked up by her mannerisms that she was agitated by something else. It was something a little more personal in nature because she was avoiding eye contact with him. "That's not all that's bothering you is it? Wait, let me guess…you and Fiona are having trouble?"

"I would say you're perceptive Captain, but even the two idiots below could've figure that out." She knew she needed to get out of the habit of referring to Snow and her husband that way, but it gave her a little bit of pleasure cutting them down like that. She needed something light after the troublesome nightmare she had. "Let's just say we're in the middle of an adjustment period."

The captain gave a sympathetic smile. He was pleasantly occupied watching those two woman struggle with communicating. To him it was due to the fact that they shared far too many traits, top on the list was an independent spirit. "I'm sure she'll warm up. She just needs time to adapt to everything."

"No, it's nothing like that." The former queen sadly chuckled. _If only that was the problem_ she thought. "My daughter is certainly interested in catching up on things. I just…." Her voice trailed, not wanting to admit her weakness. Starting again, she explained, "I just don't know if it's really best for her to know certain details."

He had personally thought it would be harder to get Fiona to talk to her mother. She had seemed reluctant earlier, confident that she already knew Regina. He was glad his impressions were wrong and that she was willing to hear things firsthand. "Regina, if she asking you then that means she wants to hear from 's a good thing love." Killian watched her and knew that she wasn't doing this to protect her daughter. This was to protect her.

Getting defensive, Regina tried to argue her point. "What does my past matter? It's only going to complicate things and hurt her." She wasn't going to let Gold use confusion and emotional attachments to get Fiona. The less the girl knew, the better. "She would be much happier not knowing my misdeeds."

He wasn't mocking her, but he laughed nonetheless at her naivety. "Do you really think she doesn't already know? While she may not be as informed about The Enchanted Forest as we are, she's a pretty intelligent woman. She must have heard something from others around her. Don't you want her to at least hear your side of the stories?"

"I've already tried that." She blinked back a tear.

Not aware of that fact, he probed. "With who?"

"Henry. Once he knew who I was, he did everything in his power to get away from me." Saying those words pained her more than she anticipated. When he received that wretched book and saw her life in the other land, her son moved fast and dragged his birth mother Emma back to Storybrooke to break her curse.

Once it was broken and everyone remembered who she was, Regina had to fight tooth and nail to see him, struggling to make changes to become a better person in an attempt to appease both him and his new family. While she knew that her baby boy was worth every ounce of that gargantuan effort, it didn't make the devastation of his absence any less heartbreaking. How could she risk that again?

Regina had so may questions she wanted to ask, but she also knew that she couldn't just get them answered without giving a few of her own. Her daughter was already prodding about how she met Rumpelstiltskin and the former queen had no idea how could answer it. Thinking about the slippery slope of confessions made her uneasy.

How could she mention being instructed by Rumple without talking about being forced to marry Fiona's father, King Leopold? That in turn lead to her mother Cora's manipulative hand in her life. Just the thought her mother, scared Regina. Even dead, that woman still had some power over her.

There was too much pain wrapped up between her and Cora, too many years of feeling unloved and unworthy to be described in words. And for what? To be culminated with how a foolish girl named Snow White betrayed her and gave Cora the knowledge she needed to destroy the small nugget of happiness that Regina had managed to acquire?

She was scared even if she would never admit it out loud.

Captain Hook did his best to reason with her. "This is different love. As smart as he is, Henry is a child. He still sees things in black and white. Fiona is older and no doubt has a better understanding of nuances. You have to learn to trust her." His crystal blue eyes entreated her to listen to what he was saying.

While she heard his words, she didn't let them sway her. "As much as would love to believe that, I doubt it. I have to be a mother first and protect her. And if that means shielding her, then that's what I'll do." Regina was utterly convinced of what she was saying. She was prepared to make a sacrifice to protect someone she loved and cared about. She looked at the captain, hoping he'd accept what she was telling him.

That's when Killian saw the truth. The real reason she was being so difficult. It was fear.

Reading her eyes, he didn't see a woman simply worried about her child's safety. He saw a mother afraid of her daughter finding out the gritty details, of seeing her as she genuinely was. Regina was absolutely terrified that Fiona would reject her if she found out the truth. That epiphany also help Killian to see how truly evil Cora was in raising Regina as she did. The cruel woman made her daughter feel unlovable as she was. He suppressed the anger raising in his chest as the one to whom it was directed at was already dead. "

Desiring to give her a break, the captain made a suggestion to change the topic to something more immediate and practical. "Come, let's talking about the assignments…."


	13. Getting to Know You

A/N: Looks like Gold had some help in acquiring Henry for Regina.

**Neverland - Unnamed Island**

As Snow silently walked with Fiona to the other side of the island in search of food, she was still trying to shake off the surprise of her stepmother assigning her with her half-sister. When they were handling work assignments yesterday, Regina seemed even more aloof and temperamental after Snow told her about meeting Fiona in the Enchanted Forest years before the curse was enacted. She had taken it as a sign that her stepmother was upset with her and she had anticipated being paired up with her husband. Instead Regina assigned Emma and David to work together in the jungle while Belle joined her stepmother along the coast by the scouting party's boats. It was an unusual match-up, but she wasn't going to complain. She really wanted to catch up with Fiona so she dived right in as soon as noticed the other scouting pairs were out of earshot. "How did last night go?"

When Fiona gave her a confused looked, she sheepishly admitted, "I couldn't help, but hear some yelling yesterday evening."

"Oh. Sorry." She felt embarrassed that her older sister heard the private details she spilled to her mother. She hadn't intended on saying as much as she did, but it happened and she had to deal with it somehow. She wondered how much Snow actually picked up on. " Did you hear anything in particular or-"

"Oh, no! Nothing like that. Just raised voices and something being thrown." Snow didn't want Fiona to feel as if she was spying. "I just mean you look happier today and Regina seemed less….angry, so I'm assuming it went well. Right?"

"Yeah, it's good…. well..um…better. " She hadn't really thought about how Regina felt. Her mother was definitely a hard person to read. Unconsciously she kicked the sand. "There's still a lot to talk about, but it was good."

"I'm happy for both of you." She gave a hopeful smile. With a chance to have Fiona a part of her life, Snow was determined to take it. She prayed her sister felt the same way. "If it's alright with you I really wish we can get a second chance to get to know one another. I know this whole situation is crazy and this isn't the best of circumstances, but you're my sister. "

Even with all the pain, hurt, and anger that she still had with Regina, Snow never felt that way about her sister. In truth Snow had never expressed anything, but love and eagerness when she heard that she was becoming a big sister. Rather than be jealous that her father was having another daughter, she was overjoyed, happy to have a companion and friend.

"I do too." Fiona was relieved that their last conversation didn't scare her away. She really did want to get to know Snow.

Regina and Belle ventured in the fringes of the jungle, looking for any salvageable items. She tried her best to give a polite smile at the blue-eyed brunette in attempt to be peaceful (lest the woman complain to Gold), but all she could muster was her go-to look of feigned indifference.

She made a deal with Rumpelstiltskin and she was going to honor it. She was certain that her daughter's life depended on it.

While Regina was relishing the silence, it appeared that her companion did not. "I must say, I was quite surprised that you wanted to work with me." Belle gave a nervous chuckle after her statement.

_She doesn't know! The imp didn't tell her about the deal._ Regina reflexively clamped her fists thinking about the gutlessness of her former master. Part of her knew that self-righteous woman would be appalled if she found out that Gold wanted to manipulate Fiona. In the future Regina may have to tell her, but that was going to be saved for a rainy day, when she had less options. For now, she'd keep her and Rumpelstiltskin's deal a secret.

Putting her game face on, Regina played along. "I wanted you to know that I'm sorry about earlier this week." It killed her to have to apologize, but she needed the woman to feel semi-safe around her so she could do her job.

"I understand." Belle gave her a bright smile. "It must be a lot to handle."

_How can you presume to understand what I'm going through?_ The former queen did her best not to roll her eyes at the woman's sympathy. "Yes, it is."

Feeling a tiny bit more relaxed she started yapping. "I know Fiona was extremely nervous about coming her and telling you the truth. "

Regina paused, seeing the possibility of getting some information about her daughter from Belle. "Her nervous?" She acted surprised. "Whatever do you mean dear?" while she hated to play ignorant, she learned years ago that sometimes one can get plenty of information from others playing the part.

Belle was eager to fill in the gaps; she hoped to help the two women reconcile. "Well, as you can imagine, there were a lot of people shocked to see that she was alive. Plenty of people started asking questions. Not just about her being back, but that the curse affected her differently. The Blue Fairy offered to make up a story to cover her, but Fiona decided to come clean. She admitted that she was your daughter."

Regina was silent; she would've never guess that Fiona stepped forward and claim that she was related to her. Who would want to be associated with her? Suddenly hit with emotions she was unaccustomed to, she hurriedly went about plucking and examining leaves from nearby plants, under the pretense of identifying possible medicinal and edible uses. Now having her back turned to her companion, she allowed herself the chance to let some tears to fall.

Belle believe Regina's ruse, continued speaking. "It certainly caused a stir, but I think most people remembered that she was an honest deputy."

Anxious to hear about certain people's reactions, Regina probed. "What about her family? Her adopted one I mean. How did they take the news?" Ever since Fiona's cousin had been shot and killed, she had completely avoided that side of her daughter's family. Once the curse broke, she was surprised that they weren't with the mob that came to her front door.

Being ever diplomatic, Belle chose her words wisely. "I'm not sure if her aunt was still grieving her son's death, but it didn't go as well as Fiona had help."

"Why? What happened?"

"She was disowned. Her family kicked her out." Belle averted her eyes, afraid to see Regina's reaction, which she knew wasn't going to be pleasant. Ironically it was because Fiona had been rejected by her family that Belle and her had formed a friendship. She of all people could appreciate loving someone that others hated. While she was still angry over how Regina had used her and locked her away, through what she observed with Henry and his adopted mother's interactions, she managed to see a sliver in good in the woman. Hearing Fiona's take on the former mayor also helped her make some peace with the past.

"I'm sure they just need time and once we get back home, they can reconcile. In the meantime, it's good that she has you and Snow back in her life. At least Archie thought so-" She covered her mouth, realizing she said too much.

Regina paused for a fraction of a second and pretended not to catch the admission. "Maybe we'll get some more time to catch up when we get back to the ship." Once Belle went back to work, Regina allowed herself some time to ponder about the news. She was trying to see how it fit in with what she had found out in the past week between the blue chip, Fiona's disposition, her daughter's scars, and knowledge that the woman had been married. She didn't know what all of it meant and how they were all connected, but her gut told her that there was thread that tied it all together.

Dr. Hopper apparently needed to remembered to keep his mouth shut when it came to doctor-patient confidentiality, but this time Regina was grateful for the disclosure. She also felt some measure of comfort knowing that Archie had been counseling her daughter, as Regina found the man to be nonjudgmental and a thoughtful listener. Though they never had another session after her mother Cora kidnapped him and framed her for murder, she still valued the time they had together.

She made a mental note to try to mimic his technique when dealing with her daughter. She hoped her Fiona would open up to her that way, but if she didn't, Regina was more than ready to figure it out herself.

The two sisters were still chatting as they collected mushrooms. The conversation had now turned to Neal. Snow was surprised to hear that Fiona knew him before he came to Storybrooke. "How do you know about Neil?" She asked.

"Technically I never met him. August told me." She remembered the day the cryptic writer told her who Neal was while they were going for a jog in Central Park during on of his visits. She couldn't believe that Rumpelstiltskin of all people had a son. She kind of found it funny that the so-called Evil Queen and The Dark One were parents. That was never included in the fairy-tales she read in the new world.

She explained. "He wanted me to keep tabs on him as some part of his grand scheme. I didn't though. It didn't feel right to spy on him. She and August butted heads over that as he thought it was better to make sure where Neal was at all times in case he was needed. Having already messed in the life of others thanks to another of his ideas, she was still getting over the guilt. Besides she knew exactly how it felt to have someone else manipulate events and she wanted no part of it. Because of The Blue Fairy and Rumpelstiltskin meddling in her life, not only she was separated from her birth family but she and countless others were sent to a completely different world.

Thinking about what her sister said, Snow wondered if she had any knowledge of her daughter before she returned to Storybrooke. "Did August tell you about Emma?"

Fiona hesitated before answering. Her half-sister was probably NOT going to like to hear what she was about to say. She didn't want to admit her role in everything.

Snow's face went from warm and caring to concerned. "Did you know about Emma?" She asked again.

"After she was sentenced to jail." She had to admit to herself that it sounded bad saying it out loud. "I was in college when he told me."

"And you didn't help her?" The pixie haired brunette was hurt and disappointed. Her daughter's only family connection kept her distance, thousands of miles away. "How could you? She was in jail. She obviously needed support. A letter, a phone call would've been nice."

Seeing that Snow was thinking straight, Fiona asked, "And what exactly would I say in that letter or with that phone call? Hey Emma, I'm your long lost aunt from another world. You're Snow White's and Prince Charming's kid and you need to to get your act together. Give me a call when you're out of jail so you can move in with me and we can start your training to be savior." She shook her head at the ridiculous speculation. "There's no way she would've believed me."

"Perhaps." She was still unwilling to accept that her sister would just ignore Emma in a time of need."It still would've been nice for you to keep an eye on her."

Fiona was insulted that her sister thought she'd do nothing. With limited resources and in a completely different part of the country, there was much she could've done. "I did what I could to help ."

Not understanding what she was talking about, Snow asked, "What did you do?"

"I made sure Henry was adopted." Fiona answered.

Snow stood stunned."Wait, what?"

Now that she spilled the beans, the former deputy had to explain the details. "August told me about Emma's situation with the baby. He had been in the foster system and wanted to avoid that if at all possible. I had a lab partner who had a cousin that was an attorney who specialized with adoption. She agreed to help us find a place for Emma's kid."

"And somehow Mr. Gold got him?"

"That was the surprise. We were looking for a family on the East coast to take him in, so it would be easier to keep tabs on him. It turns out that Mr. Gold was looking on behalf of Regina for a child. Her name was mentioned and I thought it would be best if she adopted." August was 100% against the idea, finding it absurd that Fiona would even consider the idea. Once she told him that the baby might draw Emma to Storybrooke at some point he relented.

"What made you think that Regina would be a fit mother?" She was outraged that her sister would give her grandson over to a woman who had condemned them all and who had numerous times tried to kill her and her loved ones back home. "That woman has hurt so many people, she could've hurt Henry." Of course Snow knew that Regina had certainly changed, but it wasn't until the curse broke. Not having Henry seemed to be the wake up call the woman needed. There was no way Fiona could've known back then how the woman would've reacted.

"Yes, The Evil Queen may have, but not Regina." She remembered clearly the turbulent relationship she had with the Mayor in Storybrooke. But she also knew she wouldn't hurt the baby boy. She had seen with her own eyes the random acts of kindness she had displayed. "I knew that he would be cared for by her."

Snow countered. "If you were so sure of that then why did you leave?" She had no idea why her former friend would just leave if she believed that things were alright with Regina. Her sister was obviously hiding something and she wanted to know what it was. "What aren't you telling me?"

"Trust me, it's complicated." Fiona got defensive again. "You wouldn't understand."

Ruffled, Snow placed her hands on her hips. "What does that mean?"

Fiona pointed a finger at Snow. "It means you're Snow White, the one who makes all the right and noble decisions." She threw her hands up as if she was giving up." Here's the thing, though, I'm not you, ok? I don't sit down and think about what's the best decision for the greater good."

Snow was going to say something, but Fiona stopped her. "No, hear me out. I felt bad about Emma being in jail, I really did, but I could do nothing about that. To be honest though, she put herself in that in the situation. When I found out she was going to have a baby and august told me about the horrible time he had, I did what I could to make sure Henry was safe. And yes, I did believe Regina would take care of him and yes I did think she was capable of giving him love. Was it a perfect decision? No, but it was the best one in a tight spot. I scraped what little money I had as a waitress and college student to pay the attorney because even with the favor, nothing is free." She scratched the back of her head to release some of the tension she was feeling. "Listen, you don't have to agree with my decision, but what's done is done." With that, she walked away to carry out their assignment.

Emma and David were making a lot of progress with their food hunt. They had already made one trip back to their boat to store the coconut-like fruit they had discovered and it looked like they were just about ready to made a second trip. "Do you think we should check up on Regina and Belle once we bring these back to the boat? Just make sure they're both alive?" Emma meant it as a joke, but given everyone's history with one another it was also a reasonable fear. The determined sheriff knew that the group needed to remain united they found Henry. Any friction among them could cost them dearly.

David gave a big smile at the suggestion. "I was thinking the same thing. Why don't we head there now?" Emma nodded and followed him back to the shore to load up what they found.

He really enjoyed this moment, with he and his daughter sharing the exact same idea. Missing out on her entire childhood and then some made David seek out connections with Emma any way he possibly could and he cherished them deeply.

His heart knew that with enough time, they would grow closer, but he still felt terrible that he never had the chance to bond with her earlier.

For the first time in his life, his heart ached thinking about what he and Regina had in common- missing out on raising their daughters. He wondered if she was able to make a connection with Fiona yet. The two seemed somewhat cordial this morning with Regina even extending a small olive branch to Snow by pairing her the sisters. Maybe things would change for the better…..

He quickly dismissed the empathetic thought once he looked his grown daughter again. David couldn't ignore what teh reality was. Thanks to Regina's thirst for revenge, he had been forced to send his daughter away, to a land without magic and from Emma's scant disclosures, a world that lacked compassion for his daughter's plight as an orphan.

"Are you alright?" Emma asked, as David was now scowling for no apparent reason.

"Yeah, I'm ok. Just thinking about…." He sighed and placed his bag of fruit down for a moment. "Everything, really. It's a bit much." It was an understatement to be sure. There were simply too many things to think about right now - not only did they have to deal with Fiona being a part of their family, they still needed to find Henry and rescue him, and once they had him they still have to figure out a way back home. His head throbbed just thinking about it.

Thinking that her father was just referring to the situation Fiona, Emma teased, "Yeah, who knew our family was this large?"

He chuckled. "Yeah, who knew indeed."

As she was foraging, Fiona spotted something red. The contrasting color popped out and she was naturally drawn to it. Walking up, Fiona picked it up. It was a tattered scrap of cloth, mostly gray with red stripes. Judging by the material, it was probably a piece of a scarf or a sweater. She looked at her half-sister. "Snow, do you know what this is?"

Dropping off the medicinal herbs they found into the boat, Regina reviewed and inventoried what some of the other search parties' discoveries. She saw Emma and David walking up and couldn't believe how relieved she was to see them. She had gotten what she wanted out of Belle and now she wanted a way to get some space between her and the annoyingly optimistic woman. The two blonds were hauling over some large fruits in their bags. "We brought some more." Emma said as she plopped the bag by Regina's feet.

"I can see that Ms. Swan." She gave in her typically cool tone. "It appears that you and your father have gotten the most food so far. We're still waiting on 3 groups, including your mother and Fiona.

Speaking of which she saw the two running towards the small group. Snow was out pacing Fiona and she appeared to be trying to yell out something. Sensing it was important, she and the others headed in that direction to see what the news was.

Huffing, Snow handed over what they found as she spoke. "We found it a few miles from here. It's a part of Henry's scarf!"


	14. Unpleasant Company

Once Regina confirmed it was Henry's scarf, she, Emma, Snow, and David banded together to return to where it was found in hopes of finding the boy. That meant that Fiona and her companion were in charge of getting what supplies that had already gathered back on the ship and to have what was left of the scouting crew organized to continue their search for both food and Henry.

The raven haired woman was insulted that she'd be assigned to stay behind, but since it was important that the others focus on finding Henry, she held her tongue and went along with the plan. Now an hour later and with 2 of the row boats filled, she sent them out to return to The Jolly Roger with their partial bounty and orders to update Hook on what they had found. Walking back to the shore, she was trying to decide what they should do in the meantime.

Belle saw her friend lost in her thoughts, apparently irate at having to sit out from the action. Trying to get her attention, the kind woman spoke. "What should we do now Fiona?"

"Let's get situated."One way or the other, they'd have to spend the night here as the sun continuing its decent down to the horizon. The others should be back soon - either with Henry in tow (which she hoped) or they'd come back to regroup.

Looking to the pirates, she asked, "Can any of you make some shelters for tonight?" The short man with a goatee nodded. "I can ma'am." Finally recalling his name, she replied, "Thank you Franklin. Please take whomever you need and get as many up as you can before dinner. Speaking of which, Belle, do you mind joining me in finding something suitable for dinner?" She had seen some small creatures around that the two of them could catch.

"Of course." She was happy to have something to keep her busy.

The four of them had been searching for the last two hours trying to find another clue to let them know where Henry was now, but they had no such luck. To cover more area, they split again, with David and Emma heading North and Regina and Snow looking West. They agreed to meet up in an hour and regroup.

Unfortunately widening the search didn't yield any results. While Emma was certainly great at finding people,she was more experienced with people running around cities, not the jungle. For her precious son, though, she was willing to hunt through hell to get him back. She looked over her shoulder to see if her father had spotted a clue, but he was just as empty-handed as she was. "I think the hour is almost up." She pointed out.

"We'll find him Emma." Ever hopeful, he kept an encouraging tone. "Perhaps your mother and Regina found something."

Snow was fed up with their lack of progress. "We probably should've brought Fiona with us. She's pretty good with tracking." Snow noted. She remembered how her half-sister helped find clues in the woods when a little girl was kidnapped in Storybrooke. Since Regina had seen Fiona's skills in person, Snow was surprised that she recommended that the woman stayed with Belle and help out with the supplies.

As if responding to her former stepdaughter's unsaid question, Regina spoke up. "Even if we find Henry, we'll still need supplies to hold us over until we can find a way back to Storybrooke." She went back to her hunt; still determined to find her boy.

Snow wasn't buying the explanation. "Regina, I think we both know that Belle is more than capable of handling supplies herself. " Being familiar with the guarded woman's usual tactics, she asked, "Why did you really leave Fiona behind at camp?"

Since Snow did help find Henry's scarf, Regina decided to indulge her with an explanation. "My goal is to come out of this situation with BOTH of my children. I'm not going to needlessly put one of them at risk. We're not familiar with this land so I thought it would be best to keep Fiona away from any danger."

Appreciating the intention, the pixie haired woman commented, "While that is certainly understandable, it's only us on this island. I think it would be safe enough to have her help us out."

Before Regina could answer Snow, an arrow flew between both women. Several men stepped out of hiding, surrounding them. One of the gruff ones spoke. "I wouldn't bet on that."

Belle and Fiona were walking through the small jungle when they heard some rustling around them. Not sure what it was, Fiona got her firearm ready and silently signaled her friend to be on her guard. Belle grabbed her dagger to acknowledge that she understood. A man jumped out with a broadsword and tried to cut her. Distracted by the attempt on her friend's life Fiona didn't see the man coming at her from behind until the last second.

He swiftly swung his sword and even though the hazel-eyed stepped back to avoid losing her arm in the front, he managed to graze it. Temporarily ignoring the agony she was feeling from getting swiped, Emma focused her attention on her attacker. She was happy that he didn't get the one holding the gun. Aiming her firearm at his good shoulder, she shot him. His now frightened companion stopped his attack and retreated back into the jungle.

Fiona stepped on the injured man's shoulder, where she shot him. He yelped in pain. "Why did you attack us?" She didn't know if there were any more out there besides his cowardly partner. If there were more of them, she hoped they hadn't found Henry or the others first.

"I'm not telling you anything."

"Your call." She pushed the heel of her boot right on next to where the bullet pierced him causing him to scream.

Belle averted her eyes, uncomfortable with what her friend was doing. Seeing her reaction, Fiona let up her foot. "Don't make me step on your shoulder again. Just tell me why us."

"Cause you found a way to escape this place."

Belle tried to reason with the stranger. "You could've simply asked us."

"You must be new to Neverland. " The ginger man laughed at her naivety. "This is a place where the weak get eaten alive. It's much better to simply take what we need."

"Well, it looks like you're the weak one here." She smugly pointed out.

"Not for long. You better hope my buddy doesn't find the rest of our group. It'll be over for you."

Worrying about the others, Fiona kicked the man hard enough to knock him out. "Stay here; I'll try to stop his partner."

As they were heading towards Regina and Snow, Emma heard a gun shot followed by a scream. Since only she, her father, and Fiona had firearms on the island, she knew something was wrong. She spun around to her father. "Come on, we have to find them!" They duo sprinted in the direction of where they heard the noise. After about 5 minutes, they encountered a man running away from something. Getting his attention, Emma yelled, "Hey." Without saying a word, he swung his sword at her.

Instinctively moving to protect his grown daughter, David punched the threatening man in the face. With his nose broken and blood gushing out his nostrils, the blond man easily knocked the man down to the ground. "Who are you?!"

"Please don't hurt me! We just wanted to get on your ship."

In the distance, Emma heard some more screaming and yelling. As her father had properly subdued the man, she told him."Take care of him. I'm going to check on the others."

"Be careful Emma." She gave her father a quick smile before continuing her search.

Things were quickly escalating with the former princess and queen. Not expecting to see an adult wield magic, the wannabe attackers found the tables suddenly turned on them when Regina summoned and hurled fireballs at them. Snow used the opportunity to pull out her bow and arrows and helped subdue the rest of the men. Within minutes, they were tied to nearby trees with vines Regina pulled through her magic.

Assuming that the one who shot the arrow was the leader, Regina suspended him in the air. "Why did you attack us?" She seethed.

Seeing as he had no other option, the bearded man answered. "We've been spying on you. When we overheard you mention the name Henry, we thought you were with working with the Lost Boys to get revenge for killing their own so we attacked you first."

Simultaneously both women threw out the first question that they could think of.

"Where's Henry?" Regina demanded to know.

Snow was worried that Henry was caught in the cross-fire. "What killing are you talking about?"

"The boy is no longer here. He and his captors are gone They left days ago."

"Where did they go?" Snow asked.

Their unnamed attacker spat out. "I don't know and I don't care. Good riddance to them all."

Regina lifted him higher. "Wrong answer." She slowly started closing her hand and as his air supply was being gradually cut off, he finally complied. "The three of them were escorted to a ship so the boy could be delivered to Pan himself."

Still not satisfied, Regina asked. "Which direction did they sail?"

Now gasping, he was futilely trying to get his hands to loosen the invisible grip around his neck. "To the main island of course. That's where Pan is."

Regina was about to fling him against a tree to knock him out cold when Snow blocked her arm. "Wait!" Turning to the man, she repeated her earlier question."What killing are you talking about?" She needed to know what happened as they could still be in danger.

"This island has a pit that will kill any of the Lost Boys as soon as they are thrown in. It had been the only protection we had as they were all afraid to fo near this place. When the three visitors came here, the Lost Boys landed on this island to retrieve them and they were willing to kill anyone who got in their way. Seeing as they had a boat and we had a weapon to use, we captured a few of them and tried to grab their ship. Felix tricked us into thinking that he was surrendering, but it was an ambush. They attacked us with magic and we pushed as many of them as we could into the pit. Finally Felix gave up killing the rest of us and instead cursed us to this place by creating a magical barrier so we couldn't escape."

Snow couldn't believe how pleased the man sounded when mentioning killing the , these Lost Boys were children who never age, but the mental image still bothered her greatly. Perhaps when they encountered them, these 'boys' could be reasoned with.

Regina for her part was absolutely nauseous, thinking about how close her son was to being killed by these monsters. She had to know whom she was dealing with."How exactly are they killed?"

"Not sure, but when you thrown them in the pit, they disappear into oblivion." He smirked at the thought. "They don't even finish screaming as they fall down."

Disgusted with his answer, Snow nodded at Regina who promptly understood its meaning. She finished flicking her wrist and he was slammed against one of the trees. She so wanted to kill him, but she knew her former stepdaughter was simply too merciful to let that happen.

Putting her hand on her "Let's go back to camp Regina."

Discovering her aunt in the jungle Emma exclaimed. "Fiona! Are you ok?"

The brunette was so happy to see her. "Yeah, we were ambushed by two men. Belle is back there with one of them, now unconscious. I was trying to chase down the other. There are a few of them out here."

"I think we found the guy you're looking for. He came from your direction. David was tying him up when I left him. Did he have a scar on his left cheek?"

"Yeah." She sighed with relief that he was captured. Thinking about her mother and sister she asked, "What about Regina and Snow? Are they safe?"

"I don't know. Why don't we pair up and check on them? I can know where we last saw them."

"Sure. Lead the way"

Snow and Regina made it back to camp just as the sun was setting, finding both David and Belle there, but no sign of Fiona or Emma. "Where is my daughter?!" She furiously asks Belle. "What happened?"

"We were attacked and she followed one of them deeper into the jungle." She responded. "David found me and we made it back here."

Regina was livid. "So you just left her alone? What were you thinking?" Deal or no deal, Regina vowed in her heart to destroy the woman if a hair on Fiona's head was hurt.

"Calm down!" David stepped in front of Belle to black her from Regina's wrath. "She's not alone. Emma went to find her. They probably got turned around and will be here shortly. We brought back the two men."

"David we were attacked too. " Snow updated her husband. "There are more men out there! We have to find Emma and Fiona before they do. They mentioned a pit on this island that could kill them."

Now the prince was panicking. "What?! We don't have much time before it gets too dark." Retrieving his sword , David joined Regina and Snow. "Let's go now."

Snow instructed Belle,"Please stay here. With any luck, we'll all be here before nightfall."

The pair made it to their mothers' last location, but they were no longer there. Realizing that the women must have headed back to their base camp, Emma and Fiona tried to return there themselves, but with the daylight practically gone, they made a few wrong turns and soon found themselves somewhere even less familiar than where they were earlier.

"I think it's safe to say, we are lost." Emma admitted.

Combing her hand through her hair, Fiona shook her head at their foolish mistake. "We're idiots."

Unable to contain her laughter at her aunt's deadpan delivery, Emma chuckled. "Yeah, I guess we are."

Scanning the area, Fiona suggested, "If we stay up on that hill, we can at least have a good vantage point. If we can't see the camp from here, then maybe we can find a suitable spot to spend the night."

"Sounds like a plan." Emma affably replied. It wasn't like they had many other choices.

Within a few minutes they had made it up on top. "They saw some of the beach, but it wasn't the side of the island where their boats were on shore."

"Just perfect. We're probably on the complete opposite side of where we need to be." Emma guessed. "Let's see if we can gather some wood." She started to head towards some trees behind them, passing through the rocky clearing as Fiona followed. "At least get a fire going before we freeze to-". She suddenly seemed to drop and before Fiona could stop herself, she too fell into the previously unseen opening to a pit that was directly in front of them.

**A/N: I hate it when characters fall into a pit of oblivion ;) Any guesses on what happened?**


	15. Starting Again

**Neverland - Unnamed Island**

When they couldn't find either Emma or Fiona the night before, David, Snow, and Regina reluctantly spent the night back at camp. As they laid in their makeshift tents, none of them really slept, fearful of the unknown. Even though they were grown women, it didn't change the fact that they had parents who cared deeply for them. Parents who had already missed too much and who were desperate to hold on to their daughters.

As soon as daylight came through, they planned to resume their search. First, though, David needed to get information from the prisoners they captured yesterday. He walked up to the younger one, the one he punched in the face, to get some answers. "How many of your crew is left on this island?"

Not wanting to punched again, the cowardly man quickly responded, "As of yesterday morning there were 10 of us." Doing the math mentally, he noted that with two here and the five that Regina and Snow encountered, there were still three men left. Not great, but knowing Emma, he felt that the two women could handle themselves. He just hoped they could reach them before it came to that. "Besides the pit and your gang, is there anything we need to worry about?"

"No. We've been here for a few years and we haven't encountered any large beasts."

David was relieved. That was one less thing to worry about. He then joined up with his wife and the others to grab a bite to eat before they left. Since Regina was still visibly upset with Belle for 'losing' her daughter, Snow and her husband thought it would be best if they split up to keep the peace. He kissed his wife good-bye and headed with Belle to check out the opposite end of the place by cutting through the middle.

**Neverland - The Pit**

Fiona woke up to the sound of someone crying and screaming for help. She groaned, clutching her forehead to stop the throbbing she felt. "Please stop yelling." She tried to open her eyes and see what was around, but she realized they were already opened.

It was dark, but by smelling and fumbling around with her hands, she figured that she was somehow in a cave. She had no idea how she got there. She tried to recall the last thing she remembered, but she had a hard time concentrating.

"Where are you?" A tiny voice asked. Squinting her eyes, Fiona's vision slowly adjusted to the small amount of light that came through from above and saw the small blond girl huddled against the wall. She moved towards her.

"I'm here." She tenderly squeezed the girl's hand. "My name is Fiona, what's yours?"

"My name is Emma." She was relieved to have someone with her. "Do you know where we are?"

"Not exactly. I know it's a cave, but I don't remember how I got here." Looking up at the opening overhead, she guessed, "I think I fell down."

"Me too!" The girl exclaimed. "I don't remember how I got here. I thought it was just me here and I got scared." She didn't want to admit it, but she was still afraid of the dark. She knew that 6 year olds shouldn't be, but she didn't care. The darkness reminded her of one of the foster families that she stayed with. They made her spend time-outs in the closet, alone for hours.

Feeling a camaraderie to the girl who sounded very young, Fiona assured her, "I'm here with you and I won't let you be alone. Why don't we find a way out of here and find a better place to stay?"

Eager to escape, Emma stood up, but soon fell down.

"Are you ok?" Fiona asked.

"Yes, I am. I just tripped on some clothes." For some reason she had pants on that were much too big for her, so she slipped them off. Her shirt was too large, but it was like a dress so she kept it. In fact, as they continued walking in the dark, they saw bundles of clothes around them.

Fiona's clothes were much too large as well, but once she got off the ridiculous boots, she was able to move fairly well. She was scooping as much clothing and items as she could up.

Emma was confused. "What are you doing?"

"I don't want to waste anything. We may be able to use their clothes for a bedding or something." She lectured her new buddy. If they were lost in the woods, having something to keep them warm would be important.

As they got nearer to the opening of the cave, the two girls saw the daylight starting to come through. Motivated by the light, they ran outside. Both their hopes were dashed when they saw was out there.

Fiona, who was fairly familiar with her area, was the first to react out loud. "This isn't home!" No matter where she turned, she couldn't find anything that she recognized.

Emma started crying again. "Where are we?" She had never been lost like this before. Sure she had tried to run away once, but she never made it further than the neighborhood park. This place was completely foreign to her.

**Neverland -West End of the Unnamed Island**

After confirming that their attackers were still tied up where they left them, Regina and Snow continued past to see if they could find their daughters. Being pessimistic, Regina was already imagining the worse - that the rest of the gang on the island had found Fiona and Emma and had captured them. Fearing that somehow they would be taken to whatever pit killed the Lost boys, she picked up her pace.

Even though she had more experience traveling by foot, Snow was having a hard time keeping up her her former stepmother's stride. "Hold up Regina! We'll find them, there's no need to worry."

Regina abruptly stopped to face Snow, causing the pixie-haired beauty to almost run into her. "Need I reminded you. the last call you made was wrong. Apparently we aren't the only ones here, so please forgive me if I'm a bit anxious to find my daughter BEFORE the murderous band of men do."

Snow held her hands up to show that she wasn't going to argue the very valid concern. "I get that Regina, I really do. I asked you to slow down because I just didn't want the two of us get separated. It wouldn't help the situation to have either of us run into the gang as well."

Regina rolled her eyes. "Speak for yourself dear. I'm more than capable of protecting myself." As if to prove her point, she summoned a small orb of fire in her right hand.

"Fine. Then for my sake, could you please keep your pace a little more reasonable? I too have a daughter that I love and want to find." She pleaded.

Reminded of the bond that they share, Regina nodded and resumed her walk, this time making sure Snow was following.

**Neverland - Unnamed Island**

Now that they were out of that dreadfully damp cave, the two girls were able to see each other. Emma was surprised to see how young the dark brunette girl was. She sounded so mature in the cave, but she looked no older than her. "How old are you Fiona?"

"I'm 8. How old are you?" She replied. The girl was trying to braid her hair back so it wouldn't get in the way.

Feeling as if she had to appear older, Emma commented, "I'm 6, but I'll be 7 soon."

Seeing her companion's appearance and imagining her own, Fiona had an idea. "Well, Emma who's almost 7, I think we should get into some more manageable attire, don't you think?"

Rummaging through the items they had gathered from the cave, the two girls found better fitting outfits to wear.

Being properly dressed Fiona wanted to get an idea of where they were. "Wait here and I'll be back in a minute." She ordered.

"Please don't go!" Emma was scared that she was going to be abandoned. She started tearing up just thinking about the idea.

"Fine. Once you're finished we'll leave together." Fiona was frustrated that she had to wait, but she also felt sorry for the girl. To help speed up the process, she assisted with getting the clothes fold.

She discovered two metal things that she had picked up in the cave. She had never seen anything like them before.

"Don't play with those!" Emma yelled. "Guns can hurt you!"

Examining the objects closer, Fiona asked, "What's a gun?"

"Put them down gently and I'll tell you." Emma was so terrified that the older girl obeyed. The blond girl informed her buddy. "Guns are not for kids. We have to put them away or we can accidentally hurt ourselves. Please leave them alone."

Since she had no idea how they worked and Emma was sure that they were dangerous, Fiona wisely put them behind some rocks, hidden from plain sight. She sat on a nearby rock and tried to gather her thoughts.

**Neverland - The Pit**

"I think we found the pit." David and Belle reach a rocky clearing with a hole about three feet wide near the center of it. He started looking around the perimeter, wishing that he found no clues that his daughter or sister in law were ever here.

"David, look!" Belle exclaimed while standing by the ledge of the hill they were on. He briskly walked by, careful to stay away from the ominous hole that stood between him and her. Standing next to her, he saw what she saw - boot prints in the dirt. Two separate bootprints that were undeniably made from footwear that Emma and Fiona both favored. He felt sick, but he forced himself to follow the tracks to see where they headed. As they mimicked the path taken, the two realized they were straight to the pit. There were no tracks beyond the hole, meaning that the women both fell down. He crumpled and Belle gently nudged him away from the pit's opening lest he shared Emma's fate.

As his body went numb from the thought of losing his daughter, his travel companion did her best to hold it together. She knew that they couldn't just lose hope so quickly. Perhaps there was something that they could latch to, some clue that could help them.

Once she confirmed that the ground was sufficiently solid around the opening, she delicately got on her knees to peek down the hole. With the sun in the sky, the light allowed her to see pretty well. She noticed while the fall would certainly have been painful, the ground appeared soft enough to not make it fatal. Concentrating on the landing area, she saw some footprints and marks on the ground below. It appeared that someone had landed and moved from the area. She had no intention of yelling it, but the excitements compelled her to. "They're alive!"

Armed with this discovery, Belle came up to David. His eyes were puffy and red, but he heard what she said and was started to stand up."What do you mean?"

"There are tracks leaving the cave. They were heading in this direction." She pointed her index finger to the approximate area she remembered the tracks went. Without needing to make her plans known verbally, Belle started walking and he followed behind.

**Outside The Cave**

Fiona did her best to recollect what brought her here to this cave. She remembered that she was hanging by the woods on her family's land, trying to catch some some reason, she didn't recall coming to this place nor did she actually remember falling. From what she could tell, they weren't in The Enchanted Forest. Maybe her likewise lost buddy could help fill in the gaps. "Emma, what's the last thing you remember?"

The blond haired girl reflected for a few moments."I remember being in recess at school. Then I woke up in the cave." Her brows furrowed as the drastic change.

"Recess? What's that?" Fiona asked. She was in school, like all the children her age, but it was for martial training, not recess. Whatever that was.

Matching Fiona's confused expression, Emma explained, "Um, that's play time." Who didn't know that? "We were going to go to art class."

"Art class? What kind of training school do you go to?" It was so absurd to hear that useless lessons were taught at a school." Your parents paid for a school where you play and learn?"

"I go to public school. It's free. My foster parents didn't have to pay."

Curious about this new concept, Fiona innocently asked. "Foster parents? What's that?"

Emma felt uncomfortable with the question. While there weren't usually a lot of foster kids in the schools she attended, most kids knew what that meant. Perhaps this girl was rich, Emma had noticed she had an accent that made her sound fancy. "Foster parents are adults that are supposed to take care of you if you don't have parents who can." She kept her eyes down, trying to force herself to not cry. Having gone through the ritual of introducing herself to others every time she was moved to a new home, she went ahead and answered the next question that was no doubt on her companion's mind. "I don't know who my real parents are. They left me on the side of the road. I had a new family, but then they had their own baby so they sent me back. Now I just go wherever they send me." She started sobbing.

Little Emma was expecting to hear Fiona snicker or make fun of her, either for being a reject kid or for being a baby and crying. That's what the other kids did.

Instead, she felt the older girl pull up beside her and felt an arm reach around her tiny shoulders to bring her closer. "I don't know who my real parents are either. All I know is that they are dead and my adopted parents died a couple of years ago." She looked straight into Emma's eyes and offered her, "If you want to, you can stay with me. Once we find my aunt, she'll take you in."

Emma was only six, but even she knew that the pledge was too good to be true. Feeding another kid was simply too expensive, or at least that's what she had heard from her current foster family, The Taylors. Still, even if Fiona couldn't keep her promise, Emma really loved the idea of having a friend. She was tired of being lonely.

Hearing footsteps approaching, the girls quickly got up. Three large men walked up with vicious smiles. "Well, what do we have here? It looks like some Lost Girls?" The other two laughed and Fiona felt scared as she knew these men had bad intentions. She ran behind the rocks and grabbed one of the guns they had hidden just ten minutes ago and pointed it at the men. "Stay away or I'll use this!"

Emma was alarmed and not just because there were terrifying strangers approaching them. Fiona's hands were too small to hold the gun right. The scary men must of sensed it and continued coming closer despite her threat.

Barely above a whisper Fiona told Emma. "Get ready to run as fast as you can."

It was approaching midday and there was still no sign of either of their daughters. While both Regina and Snow were hungry, neither one of them wanted to take a break from their search. They walked through the vegetation, carefully trying to avoid stepping on any reptilian creatures that seemed to be native to the place. Regina hated this place and was eager to get her daughter and get back on the ship.

From the distance they heard raised voices, so they paused to get a better listen. They immediately picked up on a young girl yelling for help. It was getting louder and they realized the child must be coming towards them. The two decided to meet the girl and ran in the direction of her cries. Within a minute two small people crashed into Snow and Regina, causing a tangle of limbs among them.

"Snow!" The brunette girl exclaimed as she lunged at the still sprawled woman. "How did you find me here?!"

Regina watched her former stepdaughter stunned and unable to form words. Noticing that there were two children, the older one who apparently knew Snow and a quiet blond, she was going to ask for their names when their pursuers finally caught up to them.

The burliest man took one look at the girls and went to attack them. Before he made contact, though, Regina pushed him and his cronies with her magic. She then used the vines and the limbs from the trees to net them easily.

As she stood up to dust herself off, the older girl came up to her. "Thank you for rescuing us. I have no idea who they were." The girl moved back to help her smaller friend up who had now found her voice. "What kind of a stupid name is Snow?" She asked.

"Emma! Where are your manners?" The brunette scolded and that's when Regina realized why Snow was so quiet - she was processing who these children are. The former mayor asked the older girl to get confirmation of her guess,"What's your name dear?"

"I'm Fiona." She said, while offering her hand to shake. "Can you help us get home?"


	16. Nice to Meet You Again

**Neverland - Unnamed Island**

It may have been vain, but the first thought Regina had when looking at her young daughter in front of her is how much she resembled her. As a grown woman, Fiona had both her sister's and her mother's features, but now she was practically a mini-copy of her.

She stooped down to Fiona's eye level and brushed the girl's hair back with her own hand to get a closer look. While her daughter had Snow White's brownish green eyes, it was her nose, mouth, hair, and jaw line were all there staring right back at her.

It was at that moment, seeing her long lost daughter not as a grown woman, but somehow transformed into a child again that the magnitude of the loss she had suffered hit her. I missed everything in her life. A battle between anger at those who kept them apart and self-pity of events that occurred due to that separation raged in her heart.

Pulling herself out of the conflicting feelings and thoughts, Regina now noticed that her own daughter was looking at her in confusion and with some apprehension, giving no sign that she recognized her.

Turning to Snow, the baffled girl's questions came tumbling out of her mouth, "Snow, what's going on? Where are we? Why do you look so different? Who's your friend?" Fiona's accent threw Regina off guard as she had never heard her use it. By the time they met in Storybrooke, Fiona had a typical neutral American accent that most of the town's residents adopted through the curse.

Regina and Snow eyed each other, silently trying to communicate with one another in hopes of figuring out what happened to their daughters both physically and mentally as it was now obvious that their memories had been reset as well as their age.

Snow spoke carefully; she had no intention of lying to her younger sister or to her daughter as the truth had a way of getting out in time. However that didn't mean that she had to spill everything. She would share just enough to get Fiona to trust her once more until they had some concrete answers.

"It's a long story, but you just need to know that we're in a completely different land and some time has passed. Something happened to you and Emma that we're still figuring out. I know you have a lot of questions, but please be patient and we'll sort it all out. If you can show us where you were before you chased down then my friend Regina and I can try to help you two."

Hearing Snow refer to her as a friend caused her to reflexively scowl before she remembered Fiona was there.

Emma spoke up again, clearly alarmed by what she heard. "Are we going to be okay?" Her green eyes kept looking back and forth between Snow and Fiona, hoping to get confirmation from one of them that everything would work out.

In a few movements, Snow scooped up the tiny blond in her arms. "Don't worry Emma, you'll both be fine." She squeezed her. Somehow the girl sensed the sincerity in Snow's voice and relaxed in her arms.

Happy to see her young companion soothed, Fiona offered her help. "I'll show you the cave we came out of." She started walking to where they had ran from mere minutes ago.

**Outside The Cave**

David and Belle continued their walk, trying to see where Emma and Fiona could've escaped. "There!"  
Belle saw the mouth of the cave and picked up her gait. As she approached the area, she and David noticed a pile of clothes. Picking them up, he noticed Emma's black boots underneath. She was here. Confused as to why she would leave her footwear, David looked around the area for other clues. What he discovered made no sense though.

There were boot prints made from the cave, but they were much too small to be his daughter's or sister in law's. He also noted that not only was Emma's boots removed, but her outfit and Fiona's as well.

Belle found both of their guns, one behind some rocks and another was about 20 feet away with more of the small tracks. "Do you think some of the Lost Boys got them?" Belle asked.

"Perhaps. We won't know until we search everywhere. Why don't you follow those tracks and I'll check out the cave?" Belle nodded, grateful to be doing something useful in the search for her friend.

"Who knows, they may still be inside. " He was about to approach the mouth of the cave, when he heard his wife yelling.

"David, stop!" He looked up and saw his wife attempting to jog over towards him, with a young girl in her arms. "Don't go inside!"

Close behind her was another girl, a little older and with messy dark brown hair accompanied by Regina.

He ran to meet his wife while Belle also approached as she had heard Snow's hollers. "Belle and I just got here. I was going to check the and Fiona fell into the pit, but they somehow survived. The cave is the only exit."

"We found them." Snow informed him.

"That's great news!" He searched around them, but didn't see the women."Where are they? Did they head back to camp?"

"Not quite." With her eyes, Snow turned her gaze to the slip of a girl in her arms.

He was flabbergasted. Reexamining the little girl, he saw that that she favored their grown daughter, but it still didn't make any sense. "How?"

"We're still figuring this out. The…girls led us here to help us piece together what happened?"

Emma gave a shy smile at David. "Do I know you?" She didn't remember meeting him before, but after being moved around so much, she could've just simply missed catching his name.

David felt so hurt that she didn't remember. He blurted out, "It's me, Emma. Your father." He went to kiss her on the forehead.

The news had an instant effect on Emma. Her face shifted ever so quickly from being content and peaceful to pain and anger as she processed what he said. "You're not my father!" She forcefully pushed herself away from Snow, causing the woman to drop her.

David went to the girl to see if she was hurt and his paternal concern was rewarded with a violent kick to his shin. Emma started screaming at the top of her lungs. "Don't touch me!" She started having a tantrum, trashing around the ground to keep everyone away from her.

While the two adults could certainly overpower her and end the outburst, neither one of them wanted to interrupt her out of fear of unintentionally hurting her. Regina unconsciously clutched her daughter to protect her.

They attempted to reason with her, but to no avail. They had to simply wait it out and finally, after 20 minutes of screaming, crying, yelling, and exhausted sobbing, the little girl allowed Snow to hold her. As she calmed down, David his best to give Emma a very short explanation of their circumstances and situation. "Your mother and I have been searching for you. I'm so sorry it's taken us this long to find you."

Once she was finally calmed down, David made a call for the entire group. "I think it would be best if we go back to camp. Perhaps we can get some answers from one of our prisoners."

Regina was jealous that Snow was carrying Emma in her arms. More than anything she wanted to do the same with Fiona, but her daughter insisted on walking with the small group as an equal. Still she did get a small gift when her daughter slipped her hand into hers. The two followed behind the others.

After awhile Regina noticed Fiona was carefully looking at her hand, playing around with the ring she was wearing. Breaking the silence, she started a conversation with the girl. "Do you like the ring?"

"Yes, it's beautiful." She stopped playing with it and continued on their walk in comfortable silence. Just as Regina was thinking of something else to say to her, Fiona looked up. "Can I ask you something?"

"Of course, you can ask me anything dear." She warmly responded.

"How do you know me?" It was a simple question, but it distracted Regina long enough that she almost stumbled when her foot caught a rock in her path.

Catching herself in time, she took a few steps and found a large rock to sit on, patting the spot next to her as a signal for Fiona to sit down. The others stopped, but when they saw that Regina wanted some privacy, they continued their hike back to camp. With the hazel-eyed daughter watching her closely, she answered, "I'm your mother." Her words were surprisingly unsteady and soft.

The girl gave a small victorious smirk."I was right." She said more to herself than as an actual reply, but Regina's keen hearing picked that up.

"You knew? How?" Even though Cora was dead, a sliver of her was expecting her mother to appear just as she had done after framing her for murder and posed as Henry to gain entry into her private vault. Instead she heard an earful from her little girl, piecing together how she solved the puzzle.

"You seemed to have recognized me back before we got to the cave, getting all teary eyed. That told me you had a connection with me because why else would you get like that?" She shrugged her shoulders in response to her own question. "Then when Emma's dad slipped about who he was, I noticed that you squeezed my hand. Finally, I noticed that we look like each other, which I know doesn't say much because in Snow's kingdom a lot of people have dark hair and everything, but with the other clues, you being my family made the most sense."

Regina soaked it all in, loving both her daughter's cleverness and the accent that she was growing to appreciate.

She tenderly lifted Fiona's chin with her hand."You are a very smart girl." Her unabashed pride was coming out at seeing her child work out what was going on all by herself.

She beamed triumphantly. "My tutors tell me that all the time." Fiona was usually more humble about her accomplishments as her adoptive family drilled into her the importance of that virtue, but in the presence of her birth mother she felt an overwhelming urge to please her, to show her that she was worthy. "Can I ask you another question?"

"Sure."

"How come I was adopted? What happened?" She couldn't understand how this woman who appeared to like her would abandon her.

"I would never give you up sweetheart. You were taken from me right after you were born." She carefully watched her daughter's reaction.

The tiny girl was surprisingly quiet, pondering over what she heard. After what seemed to be an eternity in Regina's heart, her daughter asked, "Did my adoptive parents know I was your baby? Or did they kidnap me?"

Her heart lightened at hearing Fiona readily accept that she was her daughter. "I don't know what they were told exactly, but I do know that someone else snatched you from me." It was the truth as she and Fiona had not discussed much during their initial conversation on The Jolly Roger.

The girl exhaled loudly as if she was relieved of a large burden. "Ok, good. I'd hate to think that they'd lied to me."

Not that she wasn't pleased that Fiona was taking this news rather calmly and well, but it did make Regina a bit puzzled as she was familiar as a mother with how kids this age usually acted. "Do you want to talk about it?" Shaking her head, Fiona softly spoke."No, I'm fine." Her words and tone were even keeled, but her demeanor became more introspective as she began to mull over the information.

Seeing as the hazel-eyed girl was quick to pick up on things, Regina decided to give her something else to think about, a distraction from the previous topic. "Well, then, let me challenge your wits. What do you think happened to you and Emma in the cave?" She was curious to see what Fiona came up with.

After pondering for a bit, Fiona started thinking out loud, revealing her thought process to her audience of one. "Well, when we woke up, Emma and I were wearing clothes much too large for us. And Snow seemed like a million years older." Regina chuckled at the childish estimate. "So…" She rested her face on right hand, thinking over the clues. Something clicked in her mind and she looked back at her mother. "We were grown-ups, weren't we?"

Impressed, Regina gave her another smile. "You are very good at this, aren't you?" She stood up and wiped away the dirt. "Come on sweetheart, let's get back to camp." Regina didn't want to be too far behind the others. She was keen on getting an explanation for what happened to her daughter.

"Okay." She got up and held her mother's hand

**A/N: Things will pick up next chapter!**


	17. Crafting a Ruse

**Neverland - The Jolly Roger**

Captain Hook had seen many things in Neverland, but nothing like this. Looking down at the two girls in front of him, he was trying to process and accept that they were the grown women he had as passengers the other day. Glancing once more at the girls, he unconsciously took a small step back. Thanks to Neverland, he wasn't entirely comfortable with smaller children.

Even with the thorough report Regina gave to him once they returned from the island, he still had a hard time wrapping his head around it all.

Then again, here he was on deck with the most unlikely group he had ever been a part of. To his left were Snow and David, clutching Emma along with Regina and Fiona, while on his right was his sworn enemy Rumpelstiltskin and his beloved Belle.

Ignoring the children, he addressed the remaining adults from Storybrooke. "So is there any way we can fix this and get them back to normal?" They really needed all of them to be in top form if they were going to succeed in beating Pan in his own realm. There were too many dangers out there for him to worry about babysitting arrangements on board.

David answered the captain's question. "Not that we know of. The men who used the pit on the Lost Boys had no clue and we couldn't find anything else when we checked the area again." They had left those bandits on the island to suffer the consequences of their actions against Pan's followers. The Jolly Roger had just enough supplies for themselves and they didn't need any distractions from their primary mission of getting Henry home.

While the two men exchanged information, Rumpelstiltskin kept an attentive eye on Emma and Fiona. Extremely curious to see for himself what happened, he offered his help. "If you want, I can examine the girls to see if we can undo the transformation." All magic came at a price and he was anxious what to find out it was in this case. However his expertise was flatly rejected by all on the deck.

"Your services are not needed nor wanted." Regina squeezed her daughter. There was no way she'd let Gold touch Fiona. Thinking of their earlier conversation, she was worried that he was trying to find a way in so he could manipulate the vulnerable girl. "I'm going to take Fiona downstairs to get her checked out by the doctor and make sure everything is fine."

Not understanding the exchange between her mother and the older man near her, Fiona objected to Regina's plan. "Why do I have to see a doctor? I'm perfectly fine." She was growing weary of being everyone watching her so intently. "Can't I just stay here with everyone else?"

Massaging her daughter's shoulders, Regina replied, "Nonsense, you need to be checked by a physician. You have to believe me sweetheart, this is for your own good."

The girl frowned, but accepted the instructions. "Fine."

"That's my girl." Regina gently said as she kissed the top of her head. Speaking to the others in a more authoritative tone that they were accustomed to from her, she told them, "We can discuss our next steps once we're finished." She lead her daughter downstairs.

"I'll take Emma down there as well." Snow chimed in, annoying her stepmother.

The little blond pulled away from her biological mother and protested as well. "I don't want to see a doctor."

Worried that her daughter was going to have another tantrum, Snow pleaded with Emma."Please honey, we have to double check that you're healthy and well." She rubbed her arm. "Trust me it won't be long."

Skeptical that it would be that easy, she asked. "Promise?"

"Promise."They shook hands on the deal. Happy to have her cooperation, Snow headed down the stairs to get the task down before the little girl changed her mind.

Killian looked at others. "Well, then. While the 'girls' get checked out I suggest we get to work."

Seeing as Simon was till recuperating in his bunk and Regina was occupied at the moment, the captain looked at Belle. "If you're up for it, could you please do an inventory of everything we have in the main cargo hold?"

"Right away." Belle responded and promptly left to perform her newly assigned duties.

"I'm heading to the secondary cargo hold to see if you bought anything useful on board that help us rescue Henry." Taking his cue, David and Gold followed.

**Med Bay**

While Emma was having second thoughts and now fighting Snow about getting an examination, Regina took Fiona in first. The kindly man was relaxing in the room, deeply absorbed in a book. Regina cleared her throat to get his attention. Putting down his book, he stood up, facing her and Fiona.

Acknowledging the little girl, he commented "I didn't realize that we were taking on more passengers." His genuine and pleasant smile made Fiona feel a bit more relaxed. "How do you do?" She asked as she bowed her head.

The older man laughed at her politeness. With a ship full of pirates, he had never been called sir by anyone of the crew. "It's nice to meet you little lady. My name is Benjamin, but you can call me Dr. Ben if you want. May I ask what is your name?"

"Fiona." With that introduction, the doctor's jaw dropped and he glanced at Regina for an explanation.

Knowing that the physician was someone who needed to have all the details to perform his duties correctly, Regina rested her hands on Fiona's shoulders while she launched into the lengthy tale "Doctor, we have a situation…"

**Secondary Cargo Hold**

Captain Hook, Rumpelstiltskin, and David gathered in the smaller cargo hold to see what the girls found in the cave.

Most of it was just clothes, with small daggers tucked into hidden pockets of some of the boots. David was impatient. "We have nothing here that will help us." He tossed one of the trousers to the far corner, frustrated that there were no clues on how to reverse the effects and get his daughter back to her correct age.

"Don't be so sure mate." The captain walked over to that pair of pants and turned both pockets inside out and little trinkets and tokens fell to the floor. He grinned as if he had found some valuable treasure.

David picked up one, it was a well worn pewter solider and inspected it. "What's so important about these?" It was obviously a child's toy, a well loved one for sure, but nonetheless valueless.

Rumpelstiltskin used the top of his cane to hook some clothes so he could see for himself. Fishing through the pockets, he discovered some jacks.

Hook held up tiny horse figurine between his index finger and thumb. "These are our tickets into some of the Lost Boys' hideaways. They use small toys such as these to gain entry." He knew that Pan's followers used children's games and objects as bartering pieces. It was how they acquired the necessities and cooperated with one another. It wasn't a perfect system by any means, but when dealing with children forever young, one must work with what's out there.

The former shepherd couldn't see how this would be of any use to them. "Correct me if I'm wrong Hook, but wouldn't they suspect grown adults trying to come in?" He imagined that the children would assume that they had stolen the pieces from their comrades and retaliate against them.

"Aye, we would be attacked as soon as we got near, but our newly young companions can get inside and let us sneak in-"

"No! It's too risky. I'm not putting them in harm's way."

"They would be in no danger. All they have to do is go in and help us by scouting to a way in. If you prefer, we can have them go back to the ship before we come in." It would be time consuming, but if it would win David over to his plan, then he was willing to adjust the plan accordingly.

**Med Bay**

Continuing his exam, the salt and peppered haired doctor was asking Fiona more questions. "So you had a fall back on the island, did you get hurt?"

"No sir." She politely replied.

Regina noticed that her daughter was making less eye contact, instead gazing down at the floor while she kept shifting her weight, giving a clear impression that she would rather be anywhere else than in that room.

"Ok, that's good. I still need to double check." He didn't want to miss anything that could become serious later. "Could you please take your shirt off for a second?"

"What?! No, I will not." Fiona looked at her mother to see if she would let it go, but all she saw on the woman's face was a pained sadness as if she was expecting to see something terrible.

Thinking that the girl was being shy since he was a man, the good doctor tried to reason with her. "I know you may feel a bit embarrassed, but I'm just going to check to make sure you don't have any injuries. Your mother will be here while I do it-"

"No! I'm fine." She was a physician's daughter so she knew that it was an unnecessary step. "I want to get some food and I want some rest."

Her reluctance was making him worried. "You certainly will, once we're done." He took a more firm tone, hoping to get the girl to cooperate.

Angry and ashamed to be there, she entreated her mother. "Can we leave?" Her hazel eyes were glassy and her voice conveyed a hint of begging.

Regina tried her best to not give away how bad she felt. "Fiona, please listen to the doctor. " She had no desire to make her daughter feel this distressed, but her responsibilities as a mother included making decisions that she thought was best, not simply what Fiona wanted.

The girl's shoulder slumped as she accepted her failure of not getting her way in the matter and she removed her shirt.

Regina noticed that her daughter's scars had changed since falling into the pit. Some of them had disappeared, while others ones that had appeared faded now looked fairly fresh. She guessed that some of those scars came much later in Fiona's life and the ones she saw now were fairly recent to the girl's present age.

The doctor tenderly touched her skin to get an idea of how deep the injuries were. He could see bruises that would be consistent with a considerable fall, but there was some other wounds that were not related, especially the laceration that ran down her left side. It had obviously been tended to as there were stitches. "May I ask how you got this injury?"

The raven haired girl was uncomfortable revealing the truth so she made up a story. "It was a long time ago, I don't remember exactly. I think I was messing around with some kids and got hurt."

Both adults could tell that Fiona was lying. The scar was still healing, so it was recent enough that Fiona should've remembered. Trying to give her daughter some dignity, Regina went ahead and ended the examination. She addressed the physician. "Thank you for your time and services. If you don't mind, I'll take my daughter back to our room for some rest." Without any prompting, Fiona put on her shirt and stepped over to be by Regina.

Knowing that there was nothing further he could do, the doctor nodded. "Understood."

**Secondary Cargo Hold**

The conversation was quickly becoming heated between the stubborn and powerful three men. It started with each trying to not so much convince the others of the sound logic of his plan, but quickly disintegrating into a pissing match among the alpha males.

Captain Hook was unsuccessfully pushing why his plan of using their unexpected circumstances in their favor would be the best route. "We don't know how long we'll have this opportunity - the girls can be back to their old selves soon. Using them now will give us the biggest advantage."

Gold stepped in to support the plan. "He's right David. The girls would be powerful assets in our search for Henry." While he hated the idea of siding with the vengeful captain, Rumple's and his goals were temporally aligned.

Instead of sharing his gratitude for support, the captain grimaced at Gold's endorsement.

Anger boiled in David as he threw their words back at them. "Do you hear yourselves? We're not 'using' them and they are not 'assets'." Just seeing the two enemies rally around this particular plan made David even more sure that it was the wrong move. "We'll find another way to rescue Henry. I don't want anything to happen to either Emma or Fiona."

Rumple interjected. "I can't speak for Fiona since I hardly know her, but do you think that's what Emma really wants?"

David immediately got defensive at the question. "What are you talking about?"

"It's my understanding, but the whole point of this expedition is to find Henry. By any means necessary." He made a vow to do right by his son Bae and recover Henry. Nothing was going to get in the way of his promise.

The hot-headed father corrected Rumple. "Not by any means." He wanted his grandson back, just like everyone else, but he was not letting Gold influence his family to choose the dark path when there was a chance to stay true to their ideals. Snow was still reconciling what she did to Cora, the guilt eating her up at night when she thought he was asleep. It killed him to see her dealing with the inner turmoil. He didn't want her or Emma to get hurt any more than they already had. Their family had been through enough and he was tired.

"You and I both know that's what Emma wants." Gold calmly stated.. "Look, you're thinking as Emma's father and I can respect that. But you have to also consider it from her perspective. If you were in her shoes, what would you do?"

David hated to admit it, but Gold was right, Emma would want to take the chance if it meant getting Henry back. However he couldn't just ignore his paternal instincts telling him to protect his daughter at all costs. Rubbing his jaw he thought about it for a few moments before speaking again. "All right, I'll discuss this with Snow and Regina and if they are okay with the plan then we'll go ahead and use it."


	18. Pulling the Strings

**The Jolly Roger - Guest Cabin**

After instructing the girls to eat their meals in their respective rooms and wait until they returned, Regina and Snow went to the the mess hall to join Belle and the others to go over the plan the men had discussed earlier. David was chosen to explain the plan to help make it more palatable to the mothers. He just finished sharing the gist of it.

Snow was incredulous that he would even think of putting Emma near the Lost Boys. "You can't be serious David?!"

Regina was even less impressed with the idea. "This is the most ridiculous idea I've heard from you." She crossed her arms and her eyes focused in on the person she thought responsible for the plan, Rumpelstiltskin. She practically hissed at him. "This was your idea, wasn't it?"

"Actually, you can thank the good captain for this brilliant plan." He sneered back.

Taken aback that someone she was starting to trust did this, she glared at Hook. "What made you think you had a say in getting Fiona involved?"

The dark haired rogue did his best not to be offended by the , she had crossed a line so he reminded her, "I'm offering my ship and services to get Henry back, so I do have a say. Now as to what we actually do to accomplish it, I believe the agreement among us was that we vote." As most of them saw themselves as leaders, they had devised the democratic process to keep egos in check.

"Well Captain this plan is off the table. There's no way I'll allow it." Regina's words came across as the final decision, but some of the other occupants in the room begged to differ.

Seeing as the others weren't crazy about the method, Hook laid out his reasoning behind the plan to persuade them. "With the girls, we can get maps and information directly from the Lost Boys. We'd have someone on the inside helping us. We can get a clear idea of where all of their hideouts are and more importantly where they'll keep Henry. For once, we can have a level playing field with Pan."

It sounded perfect, but Regina knew it was too good to be true. Things were never that simple. "Just how exactly are they supposed to accomplish this great feat? They have no training in case they need to protect themselves. It would be as if we were sending them to the lion's den unarmed."

David tried to play diplomat. "Look, we just need them to go in there and get a layout of the place. Once they are back on the ship and tell us the weak point, we can go inside and grab what we need. The girls would be in no real danger."

Snow jumped in to counter her husband's argument. "There is a risk; the Lost Boys can figure out that the girls are working for us and then we'll have to rescue three people instead of one." She was with Regina on this - there had to be another way to get what they needed.

"What do you suggest?" Rumple asked.

Regina took a few moments to think over their situation. "Do we have to use the Lost Boys? Is there anyone else who would have information to Pan's plans?" She asked Hook, hoping that he wasn't too set on his own plan to think of an alternative.

Captain Hook silently scoured his memory, thinking of other allies Pan used or anyone who may be willing to join up with them to fight the lad. "The pixies and fairies here won't betray him, that's for sure. Besides Tiger Lily's tribe, who have a tenuous alliance with Peter and the Lost Boys, the only other group here would be are those trapped in this land - mercenaries and bandits. They hardly have loyalty amongst each other." He shook his head. "I don't think we can count on anyone else helping us."

Gold pushed for the original plan to be voted on. "Well, I guess that means we'll be having the girls spy for us."

"No, I refuse to accept that's the only way." Ironically the older brunette was having a hard time piecing together another plan because as Queen and Mayor she was used to choosing the more efficient plans, whether it put others in danger or not. Regina was exercising mental muscles to find a more reasoning and dare say, Snow-like way of doing things.

Speaking of her, the pixie-haired woman offered up an idea. "What about mermaids? How do they feel about Peter?"

Hook immediately gave his reply. "They are only out for themselves. There's no way we can convince a large enough group to-" he stopped mid-sentence, an idea interrupted his thoughts.

Sensing that it could be useful, Regina prodded him. "What is it?"

Killian gave her a sly grin. "We don't need a group of them, just one. Some of the Lost Boys' hideaways are by water, which means mermaids can easily access them. We make a deal with one and get her to be the spy."

David was confused. "How could she do that? Wouldn't she need to be able to roam around teh camp to get what we need?"

"Yes, but mermaids in Neverland can shape-shift for small amounts of time." He figured that an hour would be more than sufficient to accomplish their goal.

Happy that Emma and her sister would be spared, Snow agreed. "That could work. We can still get to Henry." Belle and David were also nodding in agreement.

Regina allowed herself a small smile. "Then I think our next course of action to find a mermaid willing to make a deal with us."

As the others were slowly coming over to trying out the new plan, Gold grew angry. He cautioned all of them. "I needn't remind you that time is of the essence. If we go with your plan, we risk Henry. Whatever Pan has planned, it's not good. We have to move now if we want to get him before something happens to him that can't be undone."

Regina was insulted. "We don't need to be reminded Rumple. I haven't forgotten about my son."

"Really because you seem to be lallygagging. This mermaid scheme will take too long. It'll be faster to go with Hook's plan."

Belle bravely inserted herself between the two. "Stop! " She looked at Rumple. "We should at least give this plan a try." She hated to publicly go against him since she knew the others already had little regard for him, but in this case, her heart told her that it was better to leave the girls out of this and go with the new plan. "We're all here for the same thing - to save Henry."

Hearing her son's name dampened Regina's temper, but Gold seemed fueled by it. "I don't know about that. It seems like Regina is putting her daughter ahead of her son. I guess you do believe that blood is thicker than water after all." The verbal jab is enough to cause the hot-tempered brunette to lose it. Fortunately for all in the room, Snow sought to defuse the situation. "Gold, I think you need to accept that we're going to try to see if we can get the mermaids on our side first."

"Excuse me?" He couldn't believe what he was hearing. He argued. "You need to listen to me. It would be better if we-"

"The decision is made. You can either stay and help us get the plan done or you can leave."

He was disgusted at being rebuffed. For Belle's sake, he left quietly to get back to his cabin. "I believe I'll leave then." He didn't want her to suffer for the group's mistrust of him.

Happy to see that threat neutralized for the time being, Regina informed those remaining. "I'm going to check in on Fiona before I meet you at your cabin Captain." Dropping in to see her daughter was Regina's way of making sure her baby girl was all right. Though she would never admit it out loud she was terrified that Gold would somehow sneak in and capture her daughter for his own dark purposes. She quietly slipped out, eager to confirm everything was fine.

Getting back to their plan, Captain Hook made a gesture of goodwill words Belle. "If you're available, perhaps you help us go over the maps to find some possible locations for where we may find mermaids?"

"Thank sounds fine." Belle replied. She knew that Rumple needed time to cool off before he'd be willing to talk to her about the incident. By the look on his face, he was disappointed that she didn't side with him, but she would rather take the option that didn't risk Emma and Fiona if possible.

* * *

**Gold's Guest Cabin**

_They were going to regret this._

Tapping his cane on the floorboard in his cabin gave Rumpelstiltskin a rhythmic way to release his frustration over what had transpired the past week. After all of his help and knowledge, they were going to ignore his advice and going to go with the inferior plan Snow and Regina came up with. It would fail and then they would come to him to figure out a way to fix their mistake.

Their rejection of his plan was a slap in the face that was almost comical if not for the dire consequences. Here he was, The Dark One, the imp who not only created the curse to end all curse, but the mastermind who manipulated and played everyone in The Enchanted Forest and in Storybrooke as pawns for his private game. A man who even without magic was able to keep Regina and the others in line until it was time for his creation to be broken. An yet, these band of misfits and do-gooders was going to tell him that he didn't know best and were going to follow an absurd plan.

Regina was wrong. She was blinded by her emotions and now she was leading the others down a path of failure. He couldn't let this happen, but through the years he knew that rushing in without a plan would be foolish. Patience and strategy will give him exactly what he wanted and who he wanted.

Meditating on all the players involved, Rumple had to remind himself of who he was dealing with - Regina. Knowing her longer and better than anyone else on the ship, he knew what strings to pluck to get her to play along to his plan. In this case, he was going to use Regina's pathetic parental imitation of love for Fiona. She was the weak link that would give him access to his former pupil.

The best part is that he didn't really have to do much, just merely nudge Regina here and there as the need arose. He had done it meticulously decades ago when he needed her to cast the curse and now he would pull the strings again, this time for the greater good. One way or the other, he was going to get Fiona to bring them home. With Peter Pan in power, there was no way they would be safe in Neverland.

He had crossed time and space to accomplish his goal before and he was ready to do it again.

* * *

**Regina's Cabin**

She exhaled out loud when she came into the room and saw Fiona at the small table, reading a girl was slowly turning the pages and from the illustrations that Regina saw it appeared to be a book about marine life. "How are you feeling?" She asked as a way to gain her daughter's attention.

The girl was about to stand up, but Regina gestured her to stay seated. "No need to get up. I can't stay too long; I have to help the captain with something." Repeating her question, she asked, "How are you feeling? I know you weren't exactly happy with seeing the doctor, but I had to make sure you hadn't been hurt. I hope you understand." She rubbed her daughter's back when she saw the girl's head dip briefly at the mention of the physical examination.

The girl's hazel eyes looked heavy, as if she was struggling to keep awake. Yawning, Fiona replied, "I'm fine. I guess." Regina realized that Fiona had an enormously busy day and it was taking a toll on her.

"I see. Why don't we get you dressed for bed?" She waved her hand and the tunic and trouser outfit was replaced by a lavender cotton pajama set. It was practical as it offered warmth against the small draft in their cabin.

"That was amazing!" Fiona grinned, glad that she is related by blood to the woman who did incredible things.

Seeing an opportunity to get to know her daughter a little bit more, Regina tentatively made an offer. "That's not the only thing I can do for you. I could remove those scars if you want." She had long ago taught herself how to heal minor injuries. The trick was understanding the nature of the injury so the body's natural healing mechanism could be accelerated.

"Really?" Fiona was intrigued. She usually kept herself covered because she didn't want others to see it, especially her family. "I would love that, thank you."

Happy that her daughter accepted her offer she pointed towards the chair. "Of course dear, just take a seat so I can have a better look at it. I have to examine it first." Getting an up close look, she saw that her suspicions were right. In the lantern's light, she could tell that it was from a schooling whip using to strike horses. Her throat constricted and she struggled to keep her darker emotions at bay.

Since nothing seemed to be happening, Fiona doubled checked with her mother. "Can you heal them?"

Stirred out of her thoughts, Regina quickly replied. "Yes, one moment." She gently traced the injuries with her right hand and most of them faded. She was about to heal the last one, but she came up with an idea. "Hmmmmm.."

"Hmmm?" The little girl reciprocated.

"I've taken cared of all of the injuries, but that large one. It doesn't seem to fade." She rubbed her chin, pretending to think about something.

Puzzled as to what Regina could pondering, the girl asked, "What? What is it?"

"Do you think you can remember how you got it? My magic can't work unless I know the how." It was a white lie, but she hoped that it would nudge her daughter to tell the truth.

For a few moments, the girl was dead silent. "If I tell you, do you promise to keep it a secret?"

"Of course." Regina would never betray her daughter's confidence.

The girl was not sure the woman understood how serious she was. "I mean, if you told anybody, I mean anybody, I'd never be your friend."

Regina was solemn, knowing that something private was about to be revealed. She got down to her daughter's level and looked her directly in her eyes, holding her hands. "I swear, I won't tell another soul."

Satisfied with the promise, but still apprehensive of others finding out, the girl cupped her hands around Regina's left ear. She whispered, "My teacher did it. It was punishment for not doing my riding lessons correctly."

Anxious to see what could possibly make someone do that to a small child, she inquired. "What happened?"

"For one thing, he caught me taking the horse outside our estate without permission." That was a feat in itself as her family had quite a bit of land. She hadn't intended on getting so far away, but riding Thunder made her lose track of everything and pretty soon she was halfway to the next major town. When her instructor found her, his temper got the best of him. He knew that if something had happened to her, then he would've been punished so he took measure to make sure the child never did it again. Fiona started playing with her hands nervously. "I had been warned not to do it again and yet I did." Not wanting her mother to think she was simply a disobedient child, she explained. "I wasn't trying to be rebellious, honest. I just love to ride; it's the only time when I'm alone but not lonely."

If Regina had a clearer head she would've focused in on the latter part of Fiona's words about loneliness, but she was boiling mad to see that someone had laid a hand on her daughter. "What did your family do?" She had to know how those entrusted with her child reacted to the news.

"I never told my aunt." Fiona admitted.

"Why not?" She hoped that the girl wasn't afraid of retaliation from them.

Fiona spoke quietly. "Because he told me that he would hurt my aunt Moira. And if she was gone, then my cousins and I would be separated. I didn't want to be alone." Her fears shown in her eyes.

Regina backed off her anger. It would do her no good right now. As her daughter was currently safe and sound. "Let me see if I can get that scar fixed." She retraced the scar and it too faded like the others."There; it's all gone."

"Thank you." Fiona was grateful for the assistance and for a chance to unburden herself of the secret. She hugged her mother and Regina eagerly accepted the affection. "Can I ask you another question?" Regina was beginning to see that her daughter used that question constantly.

Still embracing her, she answered. "Of course. What do you want to ask?"

"How do you know how to fix things with magic?" Fiona was mesmerized by the talent.

"I learned it a long time ago."

"Who taught you?" The question was innocently asked, but it still made Regina unsettled.

Now it was her turn to deflect. "I don't remember." She lied, hating herself for doing it. She justified it by telling herself that is necessary to protect her little girl.

Looking up, Fiona asked. "Can you teach me?"

"Perhaps. When you're older. But why don't you finish up your book and I'll tuck you in for bed when I'm done helping the captain, ok?" The answered seemed to satisfy her daughter and the girl went back to reading her book.

* * *

**Gold's Guest Cabin**

Stewing in his own thoughts, Rumpelstiltskin was attempting to soothe his wounded ego, by coming up for a way to use Regina. He had to go for her greatest weakness and right now it was obviously her love. His former apprentice was starved for it and he would use that to his advantage. He started reflected on what he knew so he would be better prepared.

When Emma had first came to Storybrooke and he gained his memories of the old land back, he spent a better part of that year watching Regina, studying her in their new environment to get a sense of who she became during the curse. He saw how she interacted with others and for the most part she was simply a mellower version of her former self. That was mainly due to the fact that with the exception of Emma and Henry, all the townspeople did as she wanted. But she was completely different with her adoptive son and his biological mother and that fascinated him.

As expected she reverted to her ruthless self with Emma, seeking to push her out of her domain, using any and every means at her disposal.

Henry, though, was completely different. Observing Regina with her son made Rumpelstiltskin see how easily she could be manipulated. Where an unsuspecting person would think that she was a devoted mother doting on her son, he saw someone desperate for affection, fighting tooth and nail to keep him with her (and only her). The consequence of her smothering was that the young boy pushed his mother away and eventually sought Emma out.

Cora was ruthless because she had hid away her heart and she had every intention of training Regina to be as cutthroat, independent, and powerful. Her cruel methods had her daughter craving her approval and affection, but since she was incapable of giving Regina what she wanted most, the young noblewoman rebelled. Then a vicious cycle started with Cora smothering her and keeping her on a tight leash, eventually causing Regina to want freedom from her mother, a weakness that he was all to happy to exploit.

Recalling that fateful conversation in his mind, he remembered how he had to hold back from squealing in delight. It was all too easy.

_He was so pleased that she was enthralled with using magic and gaining power through it, just as Cora was. "You've discovered who you are. You could do so much now..." As if singing a song he melodically added, "If you let me show you how."_

_"Through magic" By her inflection, he could tell that she was still skeptical, unable to jump into something that she had previously abhorred._

_He tried to soften it, by mentioning it was only one possible tool. "Through many things."_

_Distrustful of others she asked. "And what do you get out of it?"_

_He saw that he was winning her over "Someday... You'll do something for me. Let me guide you."_

_"And I won't become like her? That was her fear - becoming Cora._

_He assured her. "That, dearie... is entirely up... to you."_

The truly tragic part was that she became too much like her mother. She was incapable of trusting another soul, even that of her long-lost daughter.

Though it would only be a matter of time before Fiona pushes her away, he knew that if he poked and prodded he could get the two divided and he could train the girl as he saw fit. After all the deal he made with Regina didn't say that he couldn't work with the girl if she went to him.

**A/N: Looks like Gold found his loophole in the deal!**


	19. Identity Crisis

**A/N: Sorry for the delay! Life has been keeping me busy, but I should have some time to week to get a couple chapters out. I appreciate all the kind reviews you send; they are definitely encouraging :) Please PM if you have any questions**

_Fiona found herself alone, stuck on a mountain, surrounded by snow. Disoriented and confused, she tries to focus on her environment to get an idea of where she is at._

_She has a migraine radiating from behind her right eye. She covers the bad eye with her hand to block the sun, hoping that the small amount of darkness would make the pain subside. After a few minutes, she gives up on the futile move. She sees that her hand has blood on it so she wipes it against her brow again and the sting tells her that she has a small gash._

_As she moves, her body seems to be trudging in its response time. Walking is difficult so she settles for schlepping across the snow. She has no idea where she's going, but a voice calls her back. "Don't leave me!"_

_Whirling around too fast for her own good, Fiona gets nauseous and vomits. It's then when she sees a woman half buried in the snow, pushed against a tree. She hobbles over and scoops the packed snow away. It's her friend Sarah badly bruised and battered looking up at her. Once she pulls her out enough for her to sit back against the tree the fiery haired woman begged her, "Fiona; you got to help find Jason. He was with me." Still foggy from whatever must have happened, Fiona is silent._

_Sarah looked around and became aware that another person was missing. "Fiona, where's Nick?!"_

**Regina's Cabin**

Regina woke up from her otherwise peaceful sleep when a piercing scream let out in her room. Immediately recognizing the source, she used her magic to lighten the lanterns in the room and found Fiona curled up in a ball in her bunk, back turned to her while covering her ears with her hands. The girl was shaking, in obvious pain.

Regina immediately turned the girl to see what was wrong and she noticed that somehow her daughter had aged a few years, perhaps a pre-teen now. She could also that Fiona was grinding her teeth, tears streaming down while suffering a nosebleed.

The petite girl was in anguish, squeezing out a plead to her mother. "Please make it stop!" The fear in her eyes resonated with Regina who pulled her out of the bunk and gently laid her on the floor to get a better look. She tried to see if there was a physical explanation, such as an injury. She couldn't find anything else.

Unable to identify what exactly was happening, Regina did her best to calm Fiona down."I'm here sweetheart." Her presence had an effect because Fiona's frantic breathing was slowing down. With her hand on her daughter's chest to calm her down, Regina felt the thumping of the small heart and could tell that Fiona was still distraught.

"What's wrong?" She tried to get answer, but the agony that he daughter was in seemed to have flared up. She clenched her teeth through the current wave. It seemed to be more than she could hand. Without another word, the petite girl passed out in her arms.

"Fiona!" Regina was shaking her daughter, but she wasn't responding.

**Med Bay**

Hearing the commotion, Snow came to Regina's room and helped her move the girl. Regina and her were now in the med bay with the doctor, trying to get Fiona awake.

Once he confirmed that her airway was clear and she was breathing normally, he gently lifted her lids to examine her pupils. "What happened? Did she fall?" He was checking for any injury to indicate the cause of her unconsciousness while he listened to Regina's explanations.

"No, she woke up screaming and in pain. I checked to see if she somehow hurt herself, but I couldn't find anything. She then passed out." Regina had no idea what was going on with her little girl and that was making the frightening situation worse.

"Did she have any convulsions?"

"No."

"Was she disoriented?" He kept his tone calm and firm.

Seeing her little lie on the bed was making her panic. "I don't know! I already told you - she was screaming in pain." She was rapidly losing patience with the physician. "Do something!"

Snow put her hand on her stepmother's shoulder. She kindly reminded her, "Regina, he's just trying to get to the root of the problem."

That was enough to get the older brunette to regain some of her wiping the tears from her eyes, she told the doctor, "She told me that she wanted to the pain to stop."

"She talked? That's a good sign." He felt better; if there were some neurological damage the girl would've had trouble speaking.

The news gave both woman some measure of comfort. With some of the tension dissipated, Snow snuck in quick observation. "She's older now. "

"Yes, I think whatever is happened to her is related to the island." Thinking of the other victim of the transformation, Regina asked. "Has Emma changed?"

"No, she's the 's with her in the cabin. " She wondered if it would be a matter of time before something similar happened to her daughter.

The doctor was puzzled as to what he could d for the girl. She wasn't moving, but beneath her eyelids he could see the rapid eye movement. From all indications she was asleep, but she wasn't waking up. It was unlike anything he had seen. "She's stable for now, but I think you need to get your magical companion back here. He may be able to offer a second opinion."

As much as she hated the idea of having the imp there, Regina knew that it would be beneficial to get his expertise. However, she had no plans to leave Fiona right now, so she stared at her stepdaughter and Snow went ahead to get Gold.

**Gold's Cabin**

Snow practically breaks down the door as she pounds it. This was no time to be polite.

The door flew open and Rumpelstiltskin yelled at her. "This better be good dearie!"

The words spilled out of her mother rapidly, with hardly a pause between words. "Something happened to Fiona - she suffered through something and passed out. We don't know exactly what it is, but she has aged some years, so we think it's related to the magic of the island."

He snaps at her. "Well, what do you want me to do?" He was in no mood to dance around the subject. If they (he knew that Regina not doubt sent her) then they'd have to directly ask him. No, they'd have to beg him to help. He wasn't someone who tolerated being disrespected and that is exactly what they did earlier.

"We need your help!" Her glassy eyes were having no effect on him.

"Sorry, I don't do house calls anymore." He sneered.

"Rumple!" Belle was now awake and heard Snow's explanation of the situation. She stared at him in disbelief. "You can't just ignore this."

His cold eyes told her that he was resolute in his decision. "Regina is her mother, let her take care of the situation as she sees fit. It's obvious that she thinks she's in charge." He went to close the door in Snow's face, but the determined princess blocked the door with her foot and used it to push herself inside.

For a few minutes, her fear of being punished by The Dark One vanished. "You're going to figure this out. You have to help us. Please."

"I don't have to do anything."

"But she's family!"

"Hardly. She is not related to me by blood, so please spare me the family card." He had no real ties to the girl and he certainly owed her nothing. If he followed Snow's logic, then he'd be related to practically everyone on the ship, given the twisted family ties.

Since he wasn't responding to human kindness, the princess tried a more tried and true tactic with Gold - honoring debts owed. "She brought Belle to you. The least you can do is see her." It was a long shot, but she hoped that appeal to his personal sense of honor with deals that it would be enough.

The room was eerily quiet as the two women watched Rumpelstiltskin mentally debate the merits of Snow's argument. He was still against helping the girl, but the delay gave hope to the others that he was considering changing his mind.

Not wanting to have another disagreement with him in front of Mary Margaret, Belle politely dismissed the woman from their room. "Please excuse us Mary Margaret. I'd like to have a moment alone with Rumpelstiltskin."

Seeing as she really didn't have any other option, the pixie haired woman exited to update Regina on the news. She hoped that Belle would be able to convince the complicated man to give them assistance.

Being all too aware of what she was about to argue, Gold cut her off. "I don't really owe her anything. She came her to see her family. She were just a fellow traveler "

"You know that's not true. Fiona wanted to help me and the others. She did this for Henry." Belle came beside him and rested her head on his shoulder.

"Don't be so naive. Very few people are truly unselfish." He warned her. "Considering her mother, I doubt Fiona falls into that category."

"People can surprise you." She countered."You did. And I'm glad."

He changed his arguments. "There's no need for me to go girl will probably be fine."

Belle knew what the real problem was so she just said it. "Please. You're better than problem is with Regina and Snow, not Fiona. If you won't help her because of them, please help her for me."

His stubbornness began to falter. He was a man who made many mistakes, too many to track, but one of the few things he did right was letting himself fall in love with Belle. She always brought out the best in him, even if he wasn't sure he wanted it. "Fine, I'll check on the girl now."

"Thank you, Rumple."

**Med Bay**

"What took you so long?" Regina spat. He was down the hall and yet it seemed like he took an eternity to show up. After Snow informed her that Belle was trying to convince Rumple to come, she went back to her cabin to check up on Emma and promised to come back once done.

Rumple asserted his position. "Need I remind you that I'm coming here as a favor? So I suggest you let me do my job before I leave you."

Chastised and desperate for any help, she closed her mouth. She hated being in this position, of needing his advice, but there wasn't anyone else on the ship she could turn to.

"Good." He gave a wicked grin. "Now let me get a good look at the girl." He pulled up a chair right beside the bed and moved his hand a few inches above her to see if anything was different. "Ah."

"Ahhh? What does that mean?" Regina impatiently asked.

Putting some of his weight on the cane, he got up. "It means that whatever happened on the island is reversing itself. I suspect that she and Emma will be back to their normal selves soon enough."

The diagnosis seemed off. Snow mentioned that Emma hasn't aged yet. "What makes you so sure that she'll revert back?" Regina crossed her arms.

He made a motion with his hand towards Fiona, as if presenting her as a prized specimen. "Both Emma and Fiona are products of magic. It's just a matter of their nature that determines the effects on each of them. She's reacting differently than Emma because she is different." It seemed so obvious to him what the difference was between them. Surely Regina saw that.

"What do you mean?" The older woman never really looked into children of True Love and children of Power. The knowledge was of little consequence to her. Until now.

Rumple pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. "You still have so much to learn." Sometimes Regina's tunnel vision with vengeance caused her to gloss over certain lessons that would beneficial in other circumstances. "Even as a child of True Love, Emma had to be sent away so she wouldn't be affected by the curse along with her family. But Fiona was taken along to Storybrooke through the Curse, but wasn't entirely caught in it." It was truly amazing, but with all magic, there is a price to be paid and he wondered what it was with her.

His words started to sink in with Regina, but he wasn't finished. "Do I have to spell it out to you dearie?" He flicked his hands. "You cast the most powerful curse ever enacted in our realm and yet it only had a partial hold on the child."

Snow came into the room. "Were you able to help Fiona?" She had heard the raised voices and wanted to make sure Rumple and Regina weren't about to get into another fight.

"We're fine. There's no need for you to babysit." He scoffed as he shook his head. "I was just telling Regina that your sister returning to her former self."

The former Mayor still had more questions. "Then what happened to her? Why was she screaming?"

"I'm not quite sure, but my guess is that she is getting back her old memories as she is physically aging back." Even as experienced as he was, Rumple was treading in new territory.

Snow was now confused. "How come when we had our memories flood back to us after the curse broke, we didn't have the same reaction?" She was certainly disoriented and needed weeks of time to process much of it, but she had suffered as her sister apparently had.

Curious about the curse's effects Regina asked Snow, "What was it like?" since she kept her memories the whole time, she had no reference point on which to gauge this new development with her daughter.

"Well..um..it hit me like a tsunami. I had to push them back at first, because I knew I had to find Emma." She vividly recalled how her life back in The Enchanted Forest flooded her mind and threaten to wipe away her entire persona as Mary Margaret. "When Emma and I fell in the portal, it actually helped." She regretted her choice in words, being stuck in their own home and seeing everything devastated broke her heart but time alone with Emma was a blessing in disguise. "It gave me an opportunity to process everything and to talk it out with Emma."

Fiona woke up as the three adults were chatting. "What's going on?" She asked.

Regina turned her attention to her now conscious daughter. "You're awake!" She smiled widely and caressed the girl's face, relieved to see her responding once more. "How do you feel?"

It took Fiona a few moments to answer her; she was still trying to sort out the images that went through her mind even now. "I don't know." She honestly replied. "I keep seeing things that don't make sense."

Intrigued, Rumple inquired. "What things do you see?"

"Just different things really, like dreams, but they felt so real." There were too many of them to recall out loud, just a jumble of fragments that she had no idea how to piece together. She finally settled on sharing the most vivid one with the adults in the room. Her description was as messy as the dream was. "I was on a snow covered mountain wearing garments I never saw before. I was bigger, like a grown up, and I was hurt. Actually not just me but another woman was there. She had red hair, like one of my cousins and she knew me. And I knew her; I think she was my friend or least I felt that she was. Two men were missing one was called Jason and the other was Nick." She tried to pull more information, but her mind was still flooded with too many chaotic images.

"I see" Rumple muttered.

Regina shot him a glare. She hated his vague responses.

Having a hunch, the older man asked another question, hoping to get something more useful. "Fiona, do you who this woman is?" He pointed to Snow.

"That's easy, she's Mary Margaret. She's a 4th grade teacher and -" The girl was suddenly confused. "Wait, no… that's not right. You're Snow." She looked the woman again. She was Snow, but she looked exactly like her friend in Storybrooke. _Wait, where is Storybrooke?_

Regina kissed her daughter on the forehead. "It's okay sweetheart. You've had a long day, why don't you get some rest? We have to talk about some grown-up business. I'll be back in just a minute."

Fiona obediently closed her eyes, happy to have some calm back in the room.

The three adults stepped outside to the cramped hall to continue their discussion. Snow whispered to the others. "She didn't meet me in Storybrooke until right before she became a deputy. She shouldn't remember me as Mary Margaret right now."

Regina voice was distressed. "What's wrong?" She had a feeling that he knew.

"I'm afraid that Fiona's memories are coming back faster than everything else." He felt some pity for the little girl's plight.

Snow was anxious to get a solution. Turning to Gold, she asked, "How can you fix it?"

"I can't. There's nothing I can do, but I suggest that the two of you figure out a way to work together on this or Fiona will pay a high price for this magic."

"What do you mean?" Regina was now on high alert.

"All magic has a price. And I fear that if Fiona doesn't find a way to process and control these memories, she'll go insane."


	20. Familial Disputes

**A/N: Shorter chapter, but I felt that Snow and Regina needed some time alone to sort through some of their family issues. :)**

**Neverland - The Jolly Roger**

Once Gold had given his warning, he went back to his cabin, leaving Regina and Snow in the hall together. He had dropped a bomb and these former adversaries had to figure out a way to diffuse it before it went off. They needed a plan to help Fiona keep her identity as she shifted back to her real age and regained her memories.

Snow took a few moments to think. "So what do we do now?" She was expecting a snippy reply, but Regina was uncharacteristically quiet. Usually her stepmother had no problems speaking her mind and coming up with some idea quickly. The older brunette's eyes were looking down at the boards that made the floor beneath them.

Regina was obviously deep in thought, but her brows weren't furrowed in the familiar way Snow had seen growing up with the woman. There she had seen the young Queen use the quiet moments as a way to reflect and ponder. Now, though, her face displayed anxiety and fear. She hadn't really seen Regina like this, unsure and worried. To truth be told, Snow was getting more concerned with the lack of a response. "Regina?" She said as she gently shook her arm.

Irritated and breathing heavily, she finally acknowledged Snow. "What do you want me to say?!" Regina was furious that her stepdaughter had interrupted her thoughts. _Why can't she just leave me alone?!_ She had too much going on in her mind and heart to worry about teaming up with the do-gooder.

Thrown off by her Regina's harsh reaction to her sincere personal interest, Snow took a step back. "Nothing. I just wanted to see if you had any ideas on how you want to go about this." Regina's chocolate brown eyes staring at her made Snow feel like a child again. She could tell that something was eating at the complicated woman. Right before her eyes, Regina was quickly reverting back to the closed off woman she had known all those years in their old land.

"Well, I don't. So if you don't mind, I need some time. Alone." She waved her hand as if dismissing a servant, but Snow wasn't going to leave just yet. She respected that Regina wanted some private time, but she at least wanted to know that they were on the same page when it came to Fiona.

"Fine. I'll let you be, but at some point we need to talk so we can help Fiona through this." She was really scared for her sister. If Rumpelstiltskin seemed genuinely worried about the possibility she knew they had to be as well.

Misreading the sisterly concern, Regina advised her, "Why don't you worry about your daughter and I'll worry about mine? I'll take care of this situation as I see fit."

While the princess was usually level-headed enough to let certain comments slide, the combination of their current shared predicament and Regina's possessiveness rubbed her the wrong way. "Why are you being so difficult?"

"Why are you being so nosy?" Regina shot back.

Snow was incredulous. "Nosy? She's my sister! I have a right to know what's going on with her." Pointing her finger at Regina, she accused, "Don't think I didn't notice that you failed to tell her that we're sisters. I understand that you're trying to catch up with her. I truly do, but what you're doing is wrong. She's getting her memories back and eventually she'll remember the whole truth."

"And when she does, I'll be the one to suffer." Regina quietly said.

"What?" Snow was bewildered by the comment and the regretful tone it was said in.

"You think I'm simply making up for lost time?" She says bitterly. Her hands went on her hips as she shares with her stepdaughter exactly was going through her mind after Gold left. "I have been trying to savor what little time I have with my daughter before she remembers everything. Before she remembers that I'm the Evil Queen and all the horrible deeds I committed." Just saying that wretched moniker made her sick. "I know for a fact that she'll leave me and run straight to you, so please leave me be."

Snow suddenly felt foolish for jumping the gun. She wanted to reassure her stepmother that they were on the same side. "If she does, and that's a big if, I promise I'll do my best to get her to work things through with you."

Regina scoffed. "I doubt that."

"Why do you assume that I'm lying?" The hazel eyed brunette was trying to understand the hostility Regina was directing at her.

With missing a beat, Regina asked. "Tell me, how many times did you persuade Henry to visit me when he was living with you?"

Now it was Snow's turned to feel regret. She could have done a better job with her grandson. She knew that Regina had missed Henry dearly. She had told herself that it was better for him to remain with them in the cramped apartment and get to know each other as a family. She could see how that living arrangement may have misinterpreted by Regina.

While she never pushed to keep them separated, she didn't exactly encourage Henry to reestablish his relationship. It may have been her projecting her own fears onto him; after all she had been trying for years to reconcile with Regina, but the woman refused to accept her. Whatever the reason, she wasn't going to make that same mistake again. "I was wrong with how we handled custody of Henry. That won't happen with Fiona."

Somewhat appeased, Regina acknowledged. "Good."

Letting the tensions slowly melt. Snow made another attempt to work with her stepmother. "Please let me know what you decide to do and I'll do my best to support it."

Accepting the olive branch Regina opened up a bit. " I think it'll be best to set aside time every day to go over her memories, perhaps between the two of us we can assist her in putting them in the right order. If the memories are too much, I may have to temporarily suppress them." She didn't want to use magic on her child, but the alternative of having a girl deal with grown woman's problems may be worse.

Snow reminded her. "Regina, you have to let her know the truth as she remembers, however painful."

"You really don't know me, do you? I meant that Fiona has apparently had some trauma in her life once she left Storybrooke. If **_those_**memories resurface too soon, I'll block those until she's ready. As much as I would love for her to not remember the ugly details about my past, I would never jeopardize her sanity for my personal gain."

Though she tried her best to keep them at bay, tears came down her face as she recalled with shame how she had done that to Henry. She still hadn't completely forgiven herself for making her little boy think something was wrong with him, that he was delusional simply because she wanted to keep the Curse enacted. Thought she'd never considered herself redeemed, she made too much progress to ever go back to the woman she was. She was a mother first and that meant putting her children's needs ahead of her own.

"I'm sorry Regina. I didn't know you felt-"

"Spare me the pity." She hadn't meant to snap like that, but she had no use for Snow's sentimentality. "I'm going to stay with Fiona tonight. Once she's awake, we'll have a better idea on how to proceed."

"I understand." She turned to go to her cabin. "And Regina? Please have a good night."


	21. Taking the Bait

**The Jolly Roger**

Once breakfast was over, Fiona went up top side, getting started on swabbing the deck. Not that she was eager to clean the ship; she actually hated it, but she was bored out of her mind. What she really wanted to do was get off the ship. No matter how many chores and assignments she completed, Regina always had something else to keep her busy (and to keep her on the ship) while the adults went around, searching for a mermaid willing to make a deal with them.

While it was certainly fun to be traveling with pirates in this new land, Fiona was getting stir crazy. She wanted to do something besides clean, work, and watch Emma. Actually Emma hardly seemed like a chore, Fiona really enjoyed hanging out with the precocious little girl. They two had surprisingly many things in common, including a penchant for playing practical jokes on teh crew.

Like her, the blond girl was slowly aging and she was now around 8 while Fiona seemed to be 12. Or at least that's what she guessed. She was still having trouble sorting through her memories. Most of the time, they came at night, while she was sleeping. Her dreams were mainly vignettes of past events.

Her mother spent time every evening with her going over what she remembered. It was an awkward process as she had some of the memories, but hardly any of the emotions behind them. It was as if she was watching someone else's life. She was happy that her mother was there with her; it felt good to be able to tell someone all of her fears.

Every day it became a little bit easier as she pieced the memories together.

As expected Regina and the others came up, each already given an assignment on where to search. Fiona went up to her mother as Snow and her husband headed off the ship. "Can I tag along?"

"No, Fiona. We already discussed this. Stay here, keep an eye on Emma, and finish your chores."

"Please I could help!" She was an excellent tracker and she was confident that she could help them find mermaids.

"No, it's too dangerous sweetheart. We'll be back before you know it." She kissed Fiona and the forehead and then started to go to the side of the side to exit.

"Mom, please let me come." The 'm' word came out unplanned, but Fiona could see it caught her mother off guard even more than it did her.

Looking back over her shoulder, Regina's eyes were wide and glassy. "I'll be back as soon as I can. I promise." She left before her emotions got the best of her.

* * *

**Neverland**

"Penny for your thoughts." Hook teased. It was his way of breaking the ice between them. He wanted to be more forthright with her, but he treaded carefully with his words. The captain knew that he was still on the ropes with Regina. She didn't forgive so easily, especially someone who suggested putting one of her children in danger. Hook knew it would take some time to get back to her good graces (or at least cordial graces).

Confused as to his reference she gave the pirate a befuddled look."Hmm?" She had better things to do than flirt with the roguish captain.

He explained his comment. "You haven't said anything since we left the ship." She glared at him, upset that he would even dare mentioning that he caught a glimpse of what she considered to be a private moment. Accepting the consequence, he went ahead and spoke his mind. "How did it feel? You seemed surprised that she called you mom." He knew that he read her expression right. As good as she was with putting up her mask, her eyes told the real story.

Regina really didn't want to talk to him, but she really didn't have anyone else to talk to about this. "You're right, this was the first time."

"How do you feel?" He kindly asked.

"How do you think I feel?" The main reason for her pensive silence was that she was still sorting through her feelings. When Henry first called her mama, he was just becoming a toddler. He was searching for her while she was hiding behind the couch. It was one of their favorite games at the time, she would pop out and he would squeal with unabashed delight. When she waited just a few seconds longer than normal to appear, he started calling out for her. She never heard a more lovely word in her life. Mama. In a beautiful way, it was her name and title. That word gave her so much hope for happier days at that particular moment and many more since then.

When Henry started referring to Emma as his real mom, it cut her more than she ever anticipated. Hearing her daughter call her mom was also bittersweet. She instantly felt at ease with it as if a missing piece of her heart was put back in its right place. However she couldn't shake that fate had cruelly twisted such a pure experience. She was supposed to hear this from her little so many years ago, before she completely given herself to vengeance and hate. If she had heard those words from her daughter Regina wondered if it would've been enough to stp her from becoming the Evil Queen, to stop the Curse, to stop all the pain and suffering she had endured.

What bothered her the most was that she honestly didn't know the answer to that question. Would she have turned away from the darkness that consumed her or would she have slowly went down the same path? Would Rumpelstiltskin still have gotten his way? Would she had still enacted the Curse?

As much as she hoped she wouldn't, she couldn't say for a certainty that she would've been the mother her daughter needed her to be. Feeling Hook's concerned eyes on her, she truthfully answered the patient man's silent question. "I need to time to think."

* * *

**The Jolly Roger**

Emma looked at her warily. "I thought we're supposed to stay on the ship."

"Do you really want to stay the whole day here? Wouldn't you want to help your parents find Henry?" Fiona saw her small friend's hesitance with her plan. "Come on, it'll be fun."

Afraid that she'd get into trouble should her parents get back before they did, Emma countered. "What if we get caught?" She was scared that they would be upset with her. Her limited experience with adults taught her that they could be fickle with their affections. Though her parents seemed different, she didn't want to take a chance.

Fiona starts to smile at seeing Emma contemplate the pros and cons of escaping for a little while. "Don't worry Emma. We'll be near the ship. I promise."

They waited until lunch was finished. Sneaking out wasn't terribly hard because most of the crew were busy loading some goods and supplies that Mr. Gold had negotiated with some traders in the area. No one was going out of their way to keep an eye on kids that weren't their own responsibility. As the girls left the ship to find something fun to do, Rumple watched from the docks. Just as I expected.

Rumple sat down on a nearby rock and waited for his unsuspecting prey to come out. After about 10 minutes, the brunette girl and her friend came out; their mouths smeared with chocolate. They had evidently convinced the sole baker on this forsaken place to give them some treats. The two girls looked triumphant with their prize.

Time to play the part. Acting as if he was just passing by and caught them through serendipity, he gasped. "Fiona! Emma! What are you doing? You should be back on the ship."

Immediately Emma began to panic. She didn't want to get into trouble. "If we go back now, will you not tell our parents?"

Fiona saw her friend's nervousness and squeezed Emma's hand. "It's ok Emma. Go back to the ship. You won't get into trouble. I'll talk to Mr. Gold." Once Emma was a good enough distance away, Fiona told the older man, "Please don't tell on her. It was my idea."

Gold gave a small smile at the girl. "Well, aren't you the noble one." Maybe she has more of her sister in her than I thought. He shook off the thought. Now wasn't the time to reflect, he had a plan and he needed to put it into motion. "Still, you know you're not supposed to be off the ship and you took Emma off the ship. Your parents need to know. "

"Why? We didn't get hurt."

"You easily could have."

"It'll be the last time. I swear." As serious and sincere as she looked giving the promise, Gold didn't believe it. All he saw was Cora and Regina in front of him. His history with her family was blinding him to the fact that she was her own person. Instead he simply took her as another Mills woman, willing to say or do anything to get what she wanted.

To play this game though, he had to act as if he had faith in her and could be trusted. "Alright, I'll hold you to it. I won't say a word and you two girls won't go wandering off unsupervised."

"Deal." Fiona said, not truly understanding the significance of the word to the adult in front of her.

"Good. To make this official, I like to propose a gift." As he waved his hand, a pastry with topped with cinnamon and walnuts appeared in his palm. "For you."

"Thank you!" Eagerly taking it from him, she bit into it and discovered a rich chocolate mousse inside. Delighted at the trick, she asked. "How did you do that?"

"Magic, of course."

She felt foolish. Of course it was magic. She had seen her mother use it on occasion around the ship, mainly for her benefit and to make the trip more bearable for the both of them. "Must be nice to have that gift." She remarked.

"You sound almost sad." Gold feigned a sympathetic look on his face. "Has your mom forbade you to use magic?"

Regina never made such a rule, but Fiona thought it was because she was unable to wield it. Though she had used it before in the Enchanted Forest, she wasn't able to summon it up here. "No, I just don't have the gift."

He snickered."You and your mother both have powerful magic."

"I have magic?" She was curious as to why her mother never mentioned it to her before. It seemed like something important enough to bring up, even if it was a warning.

Gold carried on as if he were completely surprised that Regina hid that knowledge. "But of course. Isn't she training you?"

"No." She would love to be able to preform the amazing feats that Mr. Gold and her mother did so easily. "Perhaps when I'm older she'll train me."

"Very well. I guess you haven't earned her trust yet. When you do, I'm sure she'll help you." He gave the little jab to plant a seed of doubt between the child and Regina. "I too had to wait until Regina was ready before she became my apprentice."

"You taught my mother?" Fiona's brows furrowed. Her mother lied to her about not remembering who taught her. She had no idea why Regina would do that to her.

"I'm surprised she didn't tell you. Regina was my finest student."

Before he had finished his sentence, Fiona jumped in. "Could you teach me?"

While he wanted to accept, he knew that there was still one more move he needed her to make before he took her as a pupil. He feigned concern. "I don't think your mother would like you learning magic this early. If she found out, she'd be upset with both of us." He waved his hands and handed her one more piece of chocolate. "Here, take one more. You have to get back to the ship."

"Thank you." She popped the sweet treat into her mouth.

Confident that she took the bait, he started to walk back to the tavern.

"Wait!" The girl yelled while coming up besides him.

Rumple tried to contain his joy and act nonchalant with the child. "Yes?" He asked, his brows raised.

"What if my mom didn't know? Could you teach me some tricks then?"

"I think something could be arranged."

**A/N: Looks like Mr. Gold is going ahead with his plan. **


	22. Allies and Heroes

Lagoon

Regina and Hook investigated the area, but found no mermaids around.

"I thought you said this was a popular spot." She was irritated that they reached another dead end. They were running low on time and Rumpelstiltskin was ever so kindly reminding them that the other plan - to send Emma and Fiona to spy on The Lost Boys was still play if they acted now. She and Mary Margaret were still pushing against that idea, but if they didn't find someone soon, they may have to go that route.

Hook explored behind a couple of boulders, hoping that maybe one mermaid was simply hiding behind the rock. "It was quite popular." In fact, the place used to have dozens of them swimming around. That was years ago, perhaps things have changed since then. "I don't know where they could be."

"No one is interested in making a deal with you." An unfamiliar voice answered the captain's question.

"It's rude to spy on people dear." Regina lectured."Show yourself."

Hook couldn't help but grin. The Evil Queen has now embraced being a mother. It was a nice change; she was still authoritative, but with a softer side to her. He definitely liked this new version of her.

A fiery redhead young woman swum up to the shore. As she approached the land, her fin split and transformed to legs. "Of course, Your Majesty." She remarked in a playfully mocking tone. Seeing Regina's surprise, she explained. "Your reputation proceeds you. As does your mission. Apparently the gossip going around is that you and your crew are seeking to rescue a child from Pan himself."

She assessed the two humans in front of her. They look resolute. Good, she was going to need that if her plan was going to succeed. "Pretty gutsy or stupid, depending how you look at it."

Regina was not amused by this mermaid's casual demeanor. "We'll do whatever it takes to get my son back." Her eyes bore down on the woman until the mermaid was forced to look down in submission.

Hook cuts to the chase. "Well that saves us the trouble of explaining darling. The question is what do you want?" He had been in Neverland long enough to know that mermaids had a malicious streak to them. They was no way one would help out of the goodness of their heart.

The red maned mermaid pitched her offer. "I'll help you get into the main compound so you can rescue your son and in exchange you help me get my fiance out. Pan has him trapped."

Regina wasn't inclined to take the offer. After all her only concern with coming to this awful land was to retrieve her son Henry. She wasn't in a mood to help a complete stranger go against a dangerous enemy.

Being a man who is willing to to barter for what he wanted, though, Captain Hook was intrigued by the deal. However he need more details before he committed to it. "What exactly would you expect us to do?"

Ariel thought about it carefully. "I know you have a group of people searching for the boy. I can get you on the main island undetected. All I'm asking that some of you get Eric out of Pan's prison. Once he is safe and sound, we can part ways."

"No deal." Regina immediately responded."I'm not taking a chance on my son losing his life for some grown man too stupid to be caught by the Lost Boys."

Grabbing Regina by her arms, he asked the mermaid, "Please give us a moment." As he and Regina walked just out of earshot. "We should take this offer."

"We can't afford to split our group in half! We have no idea what Pan has, but I'm pretty sure that Henry will be well guarded. We have to stick together if we're going to succeed."

"I agree, but the reality is we have no way to get to the main island without Pan spotting us a mile away. We could use an ally. Splitting up might be the best course."

"And who do you think would sign up to rescue this Eric?" Regina pointed out.

He knew she was right. The other passengers on board were committed to Henry, not some stranger. Like always, he started coming up with a plan on the fly. "I think I have a solution that will make everyone happy."

He walks back to the edge of the lagoon to the awaiting mermaid.

"I have a counter-offer. I'll go and assist you in finding your beloved prince while the others find Henry." He held up his hand to stop her from protesting. "We won't leave the area, though, until the Prince is safe on our ship. As captain of The Jolly Roger, the crew won't leave before I'm on board. Since I'll be helping you that means they'll wait until Eric and I are back. Do we have a deal?"

"I accept." Reaching out to him, she offered a hand, "My name is Ariel by the way."

He took the hand and offered a polite kiss."Killian Jones, but most people call me Captain Hook."

Behind him, Regina rolled her eyes at the two in front of her. If Hook didn't know better he could swear she looked jealous, but he was wise enough to keep that to himself.

Arel handed them a map." Here, Captain Hook follow this. It will lead you to Pan's lair, but it also lists stops along the way that you need to make to gather supplies. It's not going to be easy to get inside, so get as much you can can of these items."

"What will you be doing?"

"I have my own supply list that only a mermaid can get to. I will meet you here in ten days." She pointed to a red dot on the handmade map.

Regina was not happy with the news. "We're supposed to wait another week?" She crossed her arms. "What about my son?"

The mermaid addressed Regina. "You don't much about what is going on with Pan do you? Word around is that he has to go into mini hibernations to maintain his power. His lieutenants are running the show for now. If we move now, we should get there right before he wakes up again."

The two need no further explanation. This was going to be their only chance to get Henry back. Regina extended her hand to shake the mermaid herself. "Let's get started then."

As Ariel left, the Hook and Regina started heading back to the ship to share with the others their new alliance.

* * *

**The Jolly Roger - Secondary Cargo Hold**

The duo reached The Jolly Roger earlier than the other pairs. Regina went below deck to find Fiona to tell her the good news and to spend a little extra time with her one on one.

Once it was evident that neither of the girls were in their rooms, she went to the lower decks. The girls were in the secondary cargo hold in the middle of a conversation.

Emma was asking a question. "What was she like? Your other mom?"

Hearing the topic, Regina halted by the doorway and leaned against the wall to get a better listen. Even though she and Fiona spent the last few evenings talking about memories that the girl was recalling, one large segment of time that was glaringly missing in their private chats was Fiona's adoptive family before the curse.

Not knowing the people who raised her daughter during the formative years was driving Regina crazy. She felt an insatiable need to see how her daughter became who she was and these two nameless figures were missing pieces she had yet to connect to Fiona.

It wasn't that Regina hadn't tried to draw the details out from her; in fact she used every tactic she could think of to grab onto any tidbit she could find. Unfortunately for Regina, the girl was terribly stubborn and secretive, even more protective of the specifics than she was with the abuse she suffered at the hands of her riding instructor. She had no idea what motivated the girl to keep these normally benign things to herself.

Who didn't want to talk about their parents? She silenced her thoughts to be better able to concentrate on the discussion in the other room.

Irked that her friend wasn't answering her, Emma repeated her question. "Fiona, are even listening to me? What was your adoptive mom like?" At hearing the full question, Regina snickered at the irony of Emma in child form asking about an adoptive mother. Still, she was eagerly waiting for her daughter's reply.

Fiona squirmed on the crate she was using as a makeshift seat. She had heard Emma's question loud and clear the first time, but she hoped her silence would give the little blond girl a subtle clue that she didn't want to talk about her mother Emyn. Her adoptive parents were a cherished part of her life that she rarely shared with others and that included relatives.

Even though her aunt encouraged her to express her grief and emotions over her parents' death, the girl barely obliged. Instead she soaked all the memories, good and bad into her bones. She only spoke about them during important clan events, like her confirmation ceremony where she was expected to pay her respects and vow to all that she would uphold their values of mercy and loyalty. All the true, ugly tears she had cried were always when she was alone. Part of it was due to the fact, that she didn't want anyone to see how deeply she missed her parents. The other part, well, she kept those reasons to herself.

While her pare parents certainly gave her the foundation of her moral compass to guide her in life, she still felt lost. Even though it had happened many years ago, she felt her mother's death as if it was yesterday. There hadn't been a day that went by they she hadn't thought of them or wondered what they would have thought about who she was now. She was afraid that they would be disappointed. As the memories were coming back, she saw all the acts of cowardice and selfishness in front of her again.

Fiona wiped her glassy eyes and shrugged. "What exactly do you want to know?" She knew she was being difficult with answering Emma's question, but she didn't want to talk.

"Let's start with how she looked." It seemed like a great place to begin.

Seeing as Emma wasn't going to let her off the hook, Fiona started with the superficial answer. Closing her eyes to bring up the last happy memory she had of her mother, Fiona described Emyn as she saw her. "She had sapphire blue eyes. And long blond hair, kind of like you. She was tall and when she walked it was as if she glided across the room. " She just remembered how hard it was for her at times to keep up with her mother's pace. "She was like a living statue, so beautiful."

Without any prompting from Emma, Fiona continued with her description, this time sharing her mother's traits. "She was respected by others. She was strong, but also generous. Whenever there was a dispute, people would come to her to get the answer on how to fix it. She had a way of figuring out who was telling the truth and who was lying. My mama was kind, always willing to listen to me when I had a problem."

Regina could hear the admiration in her daughter's voice. _She was her hero._ She blinked back tears. When she heard footsteps behind her, she turned and saw Snow.

"What are you doing Regina?" Snow asked, but as soon as she finished the words and took in what she saw in front of her, she knew the answer. "Are you spying in the girls?" She scolded her in hushed tones.

"No, I was going to pick up my daughter when I heard that she was about open up about her parents." She heard Fiona continuing her description, but Snow chatting kept her from figuring out what was being said.

"This is wrong Regina." As a mother who also missed out on too much of her daughter's life, she completely understood Regina's desire, but this wasn't the way to do it. The girls would talk to them about what they wanted to when they were ready.

Snow wanted to call her out on the behavior, but she instead kept the appearance that they had just arrived. She calmly knocked on the door. "Can we come in?"


	23. Do You Trust Me?

**Regina's Guest Cabin**

Regina woke up in a cold sweat. She's just had a nightmare. Not quite a nightmare since it was a real memory, but it was a true horror to live through. She was back at her family's stables and her mother Cora had killed Daniel.

The pain and sense of loss had came back as if it had just occurred. Regina sobbed into her pillow.

"Mom?" Fiona called out in the darkness. Her voice sounded different, more mature. Regina also picked up on Fiona's accent being more subdued. It sounded closer to what she was used to hearing.

From years of practice, Regina made her tears cease and steadied her voice. "What is it sweetheart?" She asked.

"I thought I heard you crying. Are you okay?" The concern in her voice tugged at Regina's heartstrings.

She lied."I'm fine. Why don't you go back to bed and get some rest?" She hoped that the perturbed child would get back to sleep. Instead she felt arms around her sloppily thrown around her they found their target, the girl gripped Regina in a bear hug.

Sensing something was different, Regina lit the lanterns in the cabin. Sure enough as her eyes adjusted to the light she saw that Fiona had aged again. If she had to guess she would've estimated 16 or 17. She looked younger than when Regina first met her in Storybrooke, but not much.

Pushing the loose locks from Fiona's face, she comments, "You've grown." She now sees Snow's side showing on her daughter - the crooked smile and the kind eyes. Those features she had once hated of her stepdaughter seemed so perfect, so welcoming on Fiona.

Accepting her mother's observation, Fiona tells her. "I have." She gives her another hug." We can talk about it tomorrow. Let's go back to sleep."

With a flick of wrist, the room becomes pitch black and the two women get their rest.

* * *

**Deck**

Until they heard from their aquatic ally, the ship started sailing towards their next destination. As reward for their efforts, Hook gives his passengers a day off from their duties on the ship.

Tired from last night's fitful evening, Regina slept in and then chose to head to the mess hall to help out with the kitchen. She find cooking to be a stress reliever and it gives her some satisfaction knowing that she was being productive with her free time. Fiona was with the others on the upper deck, no doubt working on getting the ship ready for their next stop.

Unbeknownst to her, though, the passengers above were engaged in a completely activity.

David thought it would be wise to make sure Fiona and Emma would be able to defend themselves. As Fiona did, Emma aged overnight. She was around twelve, which gave the prince the idea to let her practice with swords. The captain didn't have any wooden ones (that would be pointless on a pirate ship) so the former shepherd was gently leading the girls with some of the basic moods.

Hook watched them intently; it was pure entertainment from his point of view.

Fiona took to it quickly which was surprising until he remembered that she had training in the old land. She was rusty for sure, but the muscle memory was there. Emma on the other hand was out of her element. She kept using a hacking motion as if the weapon was a machete.

Since Charming was busy helping his daughter. Hook informally volunteered with assisting Fiona.

Captain Hook summoned Brent to get involved with the practice and coached Fiona with her pseudo-match.

After both saluted one another, the bout began. "Keep moving!" He yelled when she seemed to attached to a certain space on the deck. When he noticed that she was expending too much energy on her strikes, he cautioned her, "Don't be fancy! You're here to win, not look pretty."

That comment elicited a conceited smile from her and he mimicked her expression. _Good to see she has self-confidence in her appearance._

After winning her first match, she went to sit for a moment to catch her breath. He walked over to give his assessment."That was a good round. You are certainly quick and you have finesse. However you need to learn to use the least amount of moves to get the job done."

He waved Ian over for the next match. "Come on. I think Fiona here is ready for a real workout." The muscular man got into position and after the requisite review of the rules, Hook started the round.

For a few minutes, the two kept with one another, tit for tat. The captain was so invested in watching his student, he didn't hear the clacking of footsteps behind him.

"Fiona!" Regina the girl turned to glance at her mother, dropping her arm which left her open to Ian's attack. At the last moment Fiona turned and the sword grazed her.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Regina asked as she lifted Ian up against the mast.

"Mom, stop!" Fiona yelled. "It was just a practice match."

Remembering last night's dream about her mother's cruelty, Regina stopped herself from flinging off the ship and instead gently released him. The grateful yet scared man quickly exited the deck. The troubled mother then focused her gaze on her daughter.

"Have you lost your mind?! You could've been decapitated!"

The hazel eyed brunette couldn't suppress her laugh. "Hardly, I may have been nicked, but not-"

Regina doesn't see the humor and gets more irritated by her daughter's caviler attitude. "Don't talk back me young woman. You're grounded. Go to the mess hall to eat and then immediately head over to the cabin and think about what could have happened."

"Regina, please." Hook started, but when her eyes met his, he backed down. Now wasn't the time to reason for her.

She waved her back and the sword in Fiona's hand came free from the girl's grip and came into her hand. "Fiona, don't make me repeat myself."

The girl looked around for back up, but the others remained silent. Hook mouthed something to her, but she couldn't make it out what it was.

David, sensing his sister in law was embarrassed by having her mother chastise her in front of everyone, decided that taking a break would be a good thing. "That should be enough for today. Why don't we all enjoy some lunch?"

* * *

**Mess Hall**

The dead air between them was filled with tension. Sitting across the table from her daughter, Regina ate in silence. She watched as her daughter sulked, pushing her food around the plate with the fork in her hand. She did her best to ignore the gloomy cloud over Fiona's head.

"You haven't touched your meal. Believe me it won't taste better cold, so you may want to eat it now."

"Whatever."

"Watch your tongue young lady." Her voice is stern, but quickly softened when the words came out harsher than she planned. "Please believe me. I only want to protect you." A shiver came over her as she thought of what could have happened if she hadn't intervened.

Fiona's cheeks were red and hot. "Protect me? From whom? You humiliated me. In front of everyone." Her fragile ego was bruised. Being angry at her mother wasn't a solution, but it did her feel a bit more in control.

"I didn't mean to do must believe me, I only did what I thought was best."

"Must I?"

Regina sighs. "Would it kill you to just listen to me for a few more days?" It would most likely be less than a week left before Fiona was back to her normal aged self. Regina couldn't figure out why she was giving her such a hard time now. "Look, I may have overreacted with grounding you. Let's just call it even."

"I don't know why I even try with you." Fiona mutters to herself. She starts pushing her food around her plate again.

Unable to comprehend the hostility, Regina asks."Would you care to clarify dear?" She does her best not to raise her voice.

Taking her mother's question as an invitation to share, she tells her. "You don't just get it, do you? It's not just about staying on the ship and out of trouble." She struggled with explaining how she felt. "It's about you not trusting me."

"I do trust you." She touches Fiona's arm. "That's why I'm asking you to listen to me."

"No, you can't have it both ways." She accusingly pointed her finger at her mother. " You can't tell me what to do without giving me a reason."

Regina knew it was true, but that didn't mean she was going to admit it. "I need time."

"I need answers." Fiona countered. "It's not fair that I'm supposed to do exactly what you say like I'm some naive child.

The two women were deadlocked, neither one willing to cede to the other. Ironically they had the same goal, but different ways of getting there.

After a few minutes of silence, Fiona conceded another victory to her mother. "Fine, you win."

"This isn't some contest. Let's work this out." Regina suggested.

"What's there to work out?" Fiona shrugs. She got up from the table. "Since I'm no longer grounded, I'm going to hang out with Emma this afternoon."

* * *

**Regina's Guest Cabin**

As she caught up on some reading, Regina heard someone knock at her door. She knew it couldn't have been Fiona since the girl seemed to barge into their room as she pleased. She thought it could be Snow, who seemed to be trying her best to give Regina her space.

Not exactly in the mood to see her stepdaughter, Regina screed the unknown visitor. "Who is it?"

Opening the door, the captain peeked in. "It's me." He looked around and gave small look of disappointment. "I see that Fiona isn't with you."

"Yes, she is spending some time with her sister's side of the family." Regina tartly replied. She hoped the princess would honor her promise to encourage Fiona to reconcile with her.

Regina knew it would only be a matter of time before her daughter would return to her correct age and she really wanted to spend as much time as she could before that happened.

Hook, however, seemed to be a more playful mood than Regina. "Finally, a moment alone then. Perhaps you and I can find some special way to enjoy this private time." He grinned as he came in and closed the door behind himself. He had a sword in his good hand. Even though he was trying to be on his best behavior as a gentleman with Regina, that didn't mean he stopped being a man.

"Please don't tell me you came here to see me just to say that." She shook her head at his woeful attempt at flirting. "You can turn around right now."

"As much as I would love to have some private time with you Regina. I actually came here for something else. I have something I want to show you." He unsheathed the weapon he brought in. It was a broadsword, with a Romanesque hilt covered in black leather. "What do you think?" He asked as he swung the weapon a few times.

She was not impressed. "Is that what you're using tomorrow for your demonstration with the girls?"

He smiled at her unenthusiastic response. "Actually, I was going to give this to Fiona so she has a proper weapon in her hands. I think this will help her quite a bit."

It was his first sword he received as a pirate. It had been with him through many fights and had helped save his life more times than he could count. He thought Fiona would appreciate the weapon and take care of it as he had all these years.

"You must be kidding me? "Regina stood and got into his personal space. "She almost lost her head today messing with your foolhardy crew. I'm not giving her a sword so she can injure herself or worse. I'd like her to stay in one piece if you don't mind."

Hook couldn't believe she actually thought that her daughter was in any real danger." Fiona was actually doing quite well today. Ian is pretty good with the sword and she managed to hold her own for a while. She just needs more practice."

"Then why did I have to interfere to save her?" She countered. She didn't like that Hook was being reckless.

"You didn't. In fact it was your yelling that distracted her." He related to her.

Her eyes narrow, barely hiding her anger at him. "I disagree."

Killian bit his tongue and calmed himself down. He didn't come to her cabin to argue with her. He had only wanted to help Regina. "The fact is, she's good with the sword. You forget that she's already been trained by her adoptive family. That's how she was raised - to be a fighter."

"My daughter is not some barbarian, though she apparently was raised by them." Regina crosses her arms, unhappy that her daughter's upbringing included such dangerous activities. She couldn't imagine what kind of parents would be okay with that. "I can't stop her when she returns to be an adult, but until she does, I'm not going to have her playing with swords."

"Do you really think she won't go behind your back?" Even though his observation was limited to what he saw in Neverland, he could already tell that the girl had a rebellious streak. Between her mother and his sister, he was amazed that Fiona even listened to them as much as she did. "As hard as you try, she can only be herself. Do you want her to see you as a mother who supports her or do you want to be the one with whom she can never win the approval of?"

"How dare you! No matter what, I'll always love my daughter."

"I don't doubt your love for her.I know you think you're acting in her best interests. All I'm saying is you can't squeeze her into your mold. She's her own person."

"Excuse me?"

"Ever since Fiona has been back, even before she and Emma changed, you have been pushing her. You've expected her to listen to you and be this obedient daughter without getting to know her."

"I'm sorry captain, but you have lost your mind. I've done nothing, but try to connect with my child. Every evening we sit and talk about-"

"Do you both really talk or are you interrogating? Something tells me that Fiona is the only one who is really sharing of herself." He paces around the room to dissipate some of the anger he feels. The old him would've just let the hot-tempered woman go on as she liked, pushing her daughter away. After all it wasn't his concern.

But things were different now. Regina was different; since he first met her he knew that she was someone he'd ever forget. As strange as it seemed, he felt like they were kindred spirits. He felt that he knew her like no one else on this ship did. And that made him feel protective, even if he was protecting her from herself.

He pointed his finger at her to get her attention. "Regina, you like to be in control. Do you know why that is?"

"Since you seem to have an opinion, why don't you enlighten me?" Regina mockingly asks. She's clearly not in a good mood with him.

In a way, her disapproval made it easier for Killian to speak the truth. "You're afraid."

She chuckles and shakes her head at the absurd comment.

He pushes though. "You're afraid that she won't accept you completely. You put on this facade, but it's not you. Not all of you anyway. You have to let her know the full truth including the parts you try to hide, like the Evil Queen and the vengeful Mayor."

She has no response to what he said. Instead, she growled,"Get out of my room, captain and leave my family alone."

He placed the sword on the empty bunk before heading out to go to his quarters. "She may be your daughter, but unless you open up to her and trust her to love you as you are, you'll never be a family."


	24. Do You Accept Me

**Deck**

While everyone was enjoying dinner, Regina was watching Hook's first officer, Ian handle the helm. She had hoped to avoid talking with anyone else today. She was sick of Hook's meddling, tired of Snow's looks of pity, and was completely baffled and unprepared with Fiona's moody behavior. She was willing to skip a meal if it meant getting some time to herself.

Even though she had apologized to Ian for her earlier behavior, the man was still leery and looking at her from time to time. She ignored his sideways glances and tried to forget about thing as she gazed at the vast ocean around them. It gave her peaceful way to clear her head. She managed about half an hour of solitude before she saw her former mentor come up. "What do you want Gold? Belle is not here."

He smirked . "I know. I just left her in our cabin. She's divvying up the list so we can split up next port and gather some of the supplies we'll need." He walked over to the front of the ship and she followed him. "I actually came up to see you dearie."

"Why am I not surprised?"

"Ah, I see you're still in a foul mood from your fight with Fiona."

"It wasn't a fight. It's a disagreement." She wasn't comfortable sharing her business with the twisted little imp.

"If you say so." He shrugged as if what she said hardly matter. "Keep your petty fights to yourself if you want. I came up here to make sure you were still focused on the real reason why we're here - to get Henry back."

Placing her hands on her hips, Regina snapped. "Get to the point Gold, I know why I'm here."

"Really? Please forgive me for wondering otherwise." He tapped on his cane as to emphasize his next point." You've seemed so busy accommodating and placating Fiona that I almost believed that Henry was simply a bonus on your to do list."

"You're a piece of work. I'm doing everything in my power to get him back."

"Be honest with yourself. You're not doing everything in your power." Rumpelstiltskin stared down his pupil. "I'm really disappointed in you Regina. I thought by now you'd learn your lesson. If you truly what to get Henry back, you have to be willing to sacrifice the unnecessary. I say cut your losses now and at least have your son with you."

Her mother Cora understood that better than anyone, sacrificing her own heart to gain power. It had cost her dearly, but for a time, she was a queen of an entire realm.

Though he did not name her, Regina knew exactly who he was referring to."Leave my daughter out of this Rumple."

"She's a loose cannon, one that can cost us everything. Stop bending over backwards for her. Besides it's pointless in the end, isn't it?"

"What exactly are you talking about? "

"You have to accept that she's not yours. Not truly. Don't be fooled by her current predicament. As you may or may not have been noticing, it will be fixed soon. She's a grown woman, who practically spent all of her life without you in it. What makes you think she wants you?"

As he read her face, his lips curled up at what he saw. Unable to help himself, he laughed at the pitiful notion she held. "That's it, isn't it? You got sucked into the fantasy. You thought that somehow this was your second chance. Do you think that when she gets back to her proper age, she'll suddenly treat you like the mother she's always wanted? Do you believe she'll think that these couple of weeks have replaced her actual childhood?"

Feeling as if he had read her mind as easily as one reads the weather forecast in the paper, Regina focused her eyes downward to avoid spilling out any more of her feelings. Her rational mind knows that for some unknown reason, he is manipulating her emotions, trying to drive a wedge between her daughter and herself. But that doesn't make it any easier on her heart to hear his words. Regina clenched her jaw. "How dare you make any comments about my relationship with my daughter! You're hardly father of the year."

He flinched momentarily at what she said. Regaining his composure, he continues his emotional attack. "That may be the case dearie, but at least I'm my son's only father. All you'll ever be to your children is sloppy seconds. You're too damaged, too broken to ever know how to truly love."

"You have no idea what I'm capable of."

"Is that so dearie?" Gold held his stare. "Prove it."

She steeled herself before making eye contact again. She made herself tuck away the pain long enough to finish this conversation. "I'm not going to play your mind games. Talk me when you actually have something worthwhile to share with me."

* * *

**Regina's Guest Cabin**

Trying to get away from Gold Regina retreated to her room and was surprised to see the mess it was in. My daughter is a slob! The older brunette had only been gone for less than an hour and in that time Fiona must have came in.

She could tell because the girl's stuff was on the table and both bunks on her side. Just the sight of the chaos was enough to motivate Regina to do some cleaning. She started with the desk and picked up some of the clothes laying on it. As she goes to dump them into the storage bin, she accidentally knocks a small bag to the ground.

Just then Fiona came in. "What's going on?"

Surprised Regina admitted, "I thought you'd still be in the mess hall, chatting with Emma." The two were becoming fast friends. Emma finally found someone who appreciated her pop culture references and uncultivated sense of humor. It irked Regina that her daughter found those traits so amusing and endearing.

"I wasn't hungry." Fiona says with a shrug.

"I see." Regina was cautious, not knowing what mood her daughter was in."Are you ill?" The concern in her voice was obvious and it made Fiona feel worse for how she acted earlier.

"No." She said quietly. She wasn't looking to hurt her mother.

"Good." Regina nodded. "I wouldn't want you to come down with anything." She gave a weak smile.

Fiona sees Regina standing over the bag and all of her grooming items spilled on the ground. "Are you trying to spy on me?" She asks in a confused manner, as if she didn't even believe what she was seeing.

"No, dear, I most certainly am not spying on you. I was trying to clear the desk and I knocked your bag down by accident. You should really work on organizing your things. I swear, your brother Henry is much more neater than you."

Her response elicited a laugh from Fiona."I don't think I'm that bad."

Seeing as her daughter was in a better mood Regina relaxed a bit. She bent down to pick up the contents that are on the floor. Not able to help herself, she reviewed her daughter's choice of beauty supplies. "This is the mousse you prefer in your hair?" She handed it over to Fiona so she could find a more suitable place for it.

The young woman walked over to her bunk and placed in the makeshift cubby she had. "Not really. It was on sale so I bought it." She remembered going to the store to pick up things to pack. She saw a great deal on mousse and went with it.

Biting her tongue, Regina suppressed the urge to counsel her daughter about proper hair care. She didn't want to ruin the moment so she found a positive take on the selection. "I'm happy you didn't squander your money."

"Well, you taught me to be frugal."

Regina was caught off guard by the admission. "I did?"

"Don't you remember? My first week as deputy you helped me get 'more appropriate clothes since I was representing the town in a professional capacity'.You also told me to watch my money." While Regina didn't appreciate Fiona's imitation of her voice and mannerisms, she certainly welcomed that her girl had a positive memory of their time together in the cursed town.

She stood up. "I take it you got more memories back?"

"Yes, I remember everything now." She looked down at herself. "I just wished I was physically back to my old self." She felt odd being a teenager. It wasn't one of her favorite phases in her life.

Clearing her throat, Regina asked, "Everything? Are you sure?"

The look Fiona gave her confirmed what she said earlier. Regina could see that the carefree girl she had known for more than a week was gone and in front of her was someone who lived a life that had seen pain and loss. Fiona averted her eyes before she spoke again. "Believe me, there are a lot of things I wish I didn't remember." She sat by her mother. "It's just so much to process and feel." She said those last words quietly. She had been on an emotional roller-coaster and it had taken its toll. Looking back, she could see that she had been unpredictable with how she acted to others. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be as angry with you as I have been."

"Apology accepted." Regina quickly offered, though she noted that her daughter was apologizing for the degree in her anger, not the anger itself.

Relieved that her mother forgave her, Fiona shoulders relaxed. "I'm glad that's behind us." It felt good to not to be arguing with her even if it was temporary.

Regina knew that it wasn't going ot be easy saying it, but what Gold said to her earlier was still under her skin. "Fiona, can I ask you something?"

"Um, sure. What is it?"

"When we've had our talks on the ship, you never mentioned your adoptive parents." She saw her daughter tense up at the mention of her family. The girl didn't openly object though, so Regina continued and asked her question."I want to know why you haven't said anything about them."

Getting defensive, Fiona crossed her arms. "What is there to talk about? They're dead." Her voice cracked and lost eye contact with Regina again.

"Do you want to talk about it?" She knew she had to be gentle about this. She didn't want to push Fiona too hard about it.

Fiona opened her mouth to say something, however she closed it before a word escaped. Debating within herself about what course to take, Fiona finally spoke."At the time we thought a bunch of raiders came to our palace to destroy everything." She started playing with her hands to help ease her nerves. "My parents did everything they could to protect me, but it was useless. The men came pouring in…I'm supposed to run…I hear her screaming and I look back…..he's dead too…" She starts fumbling her words, too many harrowing memories distract her from finishing her sentences and thoughts. She's not really talking to Regina; rather she's simply unburdening herself out loud and her mother is there watching it, feeling completely helpless as her daughter is reliving her pain. Regina desperately wished she had comforting words to give Fiona, but she was at a loss. She wrapped her arms around the grieving girl, rubbed her back, and listened to everything that the young woman said. It was the only thing she thought was appropriate in this situation.

Gaining some sense of composure and remembering who was in the room, Fiona wiped her face. She was ashamed at exposing herself like this. "That was the first time I used magic." She bitterly said. "One moment I was in the palace with my parents and the next I was outside." She sobbed on Regina's shirt for a few minutes and when that died down, she leaned against her shoulder.

Though she felt no pressure from her mother, Fiona felt compelled to tell her, "I did try to go back, but the gate was up and there were guards everywhere. I hid in a safe spot until my aunt found me two days later. They were attacked too, but by a smaller group so they were able to fend them off."

"And you lived with them?"

Fiona nodded in acknowledgment. "She took me in and raised me with my cousins. She protected me, even when the Curse took us, she watched out for me." A new pain developed as Fiona recalled her aunt's reaction once she returned after the curse was broken. After everything they had went through, she was disowned by the only family she had really known. "And now she hates me."

Regina felt responsible for her part in the matter, with creating the curse. She tried to comfort Fiona. "I'm sure she doesn't. You just have to give her time."

"You don't understand."

"You're being too hard on yourself sweetheart."

"I'm sure she'll realize that you had no control over what happened to your cousin "

"No, you're wrong. I had a choice and my aunt knew it." Fiona shook her head and pushed herself away from Regina as she got up."You really don't get it, do you?" She started pacing, agitated and upset."When I went to that house, I knew you were my mother."

Not following, Regina tried to reason with her. "Surely, your aunt would understand that you felt the need to protect me, especially in a situation like that."

Fiona scoffed. "Is that what you think it was? Simply a situation?" She looked at her mother incredulously.

"I didn't mean to make light of what happened. I'm sorry."

Fiona hadn't really heard her mother's words, she was too upset."He was there, in your house because the curse you casted gave him false memories of an addict! An addict that was desperate enough to steal."

"I'm so sorry." Regina couldn't hide from the truth of her daughter's words; she had to take responsibility. "You're mad at me for putting you in that situation. Believe if I could-"

"You misunderstand me. I'm not mad at you. There was no way you could anticipate every consequence of your curse." Fiona started reciting what her aunt told her before she rejected her. "But I knew better. I was aware of what was going on. And in that moment I chose you. My aunt will never accept me again because when she sees my face all she'll see is a traitor." In truth, Fiona saw the same thing when she looked in the mirror. She felt disloyal to her family and at the same time, she knew in her heart she would make the same choice. Looking at Regina she admitted, "That's the real reason I left Storybrooke. I couldn't deal with the fact that even though you did all those horrible things to everyone, I still cared about you. "

Regina immediately got up to hold her daughter. Though she couldn't begin to understand the conflicting emotions Fiona had been feeling all these years, she understood the significance of that felt an acceptance of herself that she hadn't felt since Henry came to her in the mines. Her daughter had chosen her, fully knowing that she was the Evil Queen.


	25. It's a Trap

Fiona tried not to look too excited in front of her mother and the captain. She had finally convinced Regina to let her assist them as they started picking up had a peek at the document when her mom was out of their room the night before. The mermaid had certainly given them a lengthy list, but all of the items seemed like necessary precautions. Hopefully everything would help them to be successfully in saving Henry.

However, getting her mother to agree meant she had to follow certain rules. As part of the deal she could not talk to strangers and anyone not related to her purpose beyond a greeting and she wasn't wander off on her own. When she tried to point out to Regina how the two rules overlapped, she was given a glare that could only be described as fearsome.

Wisely, Fiona dropped the matter and gave her word to keep the rules.

As a safeguard, she was assigned the task of getting some ingredients from a local merchant that they would use to create some potions and a sleeping powder. It was a task that would keep her out of danger and she was expected to return to The Jolly Roger as soon as it was completed.

Since she was leaving the ship, Emma was joining her. Charming was protective of his daughter, especially now that she had aged and was now around sixteen. In his mind, a ship full of pirates was no place for Emma. They would've taken Emma with them, but they were supposed to make a trade with a ruthless mercenary. Apparently he had in his possession a shield that could withstand some of Pan's magic.

Fiona was certainly happy to have the company, as Emma was easy to talk to and she knew how to keep secrets, which Fiona needed as Rumpelstiltskin and her were supposed to meet up later for a meeting. As they got closer to the main island to rescue Henry, Fiona wanted to have something valuable to offer to the group.

After reviewing with everyone else what tasks they needed to accomplish and dismissing them, Regina turned to Fiona. "Do you remember what you need to do?"

The younger brunette held up her short list. "I'm supposed to get these ingredients for the potions and powder."

"Have you memorized the list in case you lost it?"

"Yes I have and Emma has a copy as a back up to the back up." She hoped that the attention to detail would help her mom to trust her a bit more.

"Good." Regina was trying to make sure nothing was missed. "Did you make sure-"

"Mom, please!" Fiona was exasperated. "I'm not a child! I know what to do. Find a merchant or someone willing to trade, get what we need, and head straight back to the ship. No detours, no distractions."

"I didn't mean to insinuate that you weren't ready."

Fiona rubbed the back of her neck to relieve some of the tension she was feeling. "And I didn't mean to snap. I'm sorry."

The two stayed quiet, they were still working on communicating honestly with one another.

Captain Hook broke the ice and suggested to his companion. "Why don't we get started then?"

* * *

The two girls started heading towards the village further inland. The first fifteen minutes went by fairly quickly as the new sights were beautiful to look at. Fiona was amazed at the diversity of fauna and wildlife around them. She wished they were not here on urgent business as she would really enjoy getting a closer look at the land.

Seeing as the village was going to be coming up in a bit, she went ahead and asked a favor from Emma. "I need to you to cover for me for about an hour."

"Wait, why?" Emma thought it was strange for Fiona to have something planned since they had docked here this morning.

"I have to meet up with someone." She answered vaguely.

Emma shook her head. "Are you crazy? Regina very specifically said that you needed to be back on the ship as soon as we got the potion ingredients. No ifs, ands, or buts."

Irritated by the blond's tone, Fiona replied, "I'm sorry, I didn't realize that you were now Regina's daughter."

"Fiona, seriously, it's not safe." There were the Lost Boys, mercenaries, mermaids, and who knows what else in the land. Emma could not guess where Fiona wanted to go. "What can be so important that you risk getting in trouble AGAIN with your mother?"

Fiona looked around to make sure no one else was near enough to eavesdrop. "I'm meeting with Gold to get some lessons on magic." She whispered.

"Gold?!" Emma's eyes widened at her friend's response. "I wish you were just sneaking out to see a guy."

"What's wrong? He said he can help me learn to use my abilities." It was too good of an offer to pass up on.

Emma rolled her eyes at her friend's insubordination. "For one thing, you supposed to stay away from him."

"Who told you that?" Fiona wouldn't put it past her mom to warn the whole ship about her rules and have them enforce them while she was gone.

"My mom; she said that he tried to kidnap you when you born." It was one of the first things Mary Margaret told her daughter to help her understand how careful she needed to be around the man.

"Well, he failed and I got adopted by a good family. Besides he's changed, he's with Belle now and he's here to rescue Henry. There's nothing to worry about." She placed her arm around her buddy's shoulder. "Come on, I know what I'm doing. It's only for an hour and the second he tries anything funny, I'll stop."

Emma still looked unsure."If you want to learn, then why don't you just talk to your mom? She knows the same stuff, right? She's got to be safer."

"She hasn't taught me anything yet and he's offering now. If it were up to her, I'm sure she'd wait until I was her age before she's teach me anything." Fiona was impatient, she was ready to learn sooner rather than later. "We here to rescue Henry. I don't know about you, but I want to be able to contribute."

"Of course." Emma nodded.

"If it makes you feel better, you don't have to lie to anyone. Just don't volunteer the information. Please, can you keep my secret?"

Emma caved. "Yeah, I can."

Relieved, Fiona got back to their assignment. "Let's go someone to trade with and get this over with."

* * *

Gold was moving faster than Belle imagined possible, his cane was hardly slowing him down. What's more, she also noted that he seemed to have a very clear idea of where they were going. He never once consulted the map they were given. "You've been here before, haven't you?"

He knew he had been caught, but he wanted to minimize the damage. He turned to look at her. "In a manner of speaking."

"Please don't toy with words. Or with me." Belle stopped in her tracks and placed her hands on her hips, giving Gold a stern look. "Have you been to the blacksmith before?"

"No, I have not personally, but I do know where he is located."

"And how is that?"

"I've been here before Belle. I know exactly who we're dealing with. Before I left here I made sure I had some way to protect myself from him should I ever blacksmith is a part of my plan."

"If you had contacts here already, why didn't you tell us before? Why didn't mention anything to the others?"

He took a seat on a large rock. "Because they don't trust me and they would ask questions I'd rather not answer. "

Belle was suspicious now. She knew Rumpelstiltskin was used to doing things as he pleased, but she also knew that left unchecked, he was a man who made wrong choices. As long as the results ended with what he was seeking, he didn't always bother to review the morality of the means. It was a huge blind spot that she hoped to help him with.

"Can you tell me what other plans and preparations you have made?"

He admitted to her, "I have mainly contacts around this land that I had….. Cultivated during my time in Neverland. Besides the blacksmith I have some business to attend to today with some old acquaintances of mine."

"Ah." Belle put a few pieces together in her mind. "I take it you rather not share who this acquaintance is."

"No, not exactly, but he is someone who can give us an honest assessment of where we stand against Pan. If we're to save Henry, we'll need to be at our very best. I need to know how to best prepare for when we land on the main island."

Everything about his plan and contacts seemed on the up and up. "Let me join you." She offered.

"No, he will only meet with me alone. He's only doing that because he owes me a favor."His words were accurate, but it wasn't the complete truth. After getting information from his contact, Rumpelstiltskin was going to meet up with Fiona to give her a private lesson and he knew Belle would not approve. "It really not your concern. I have this under control."

Belle was hurt by his words and tone. "This most certainly concerns me." She came up to him. "I want to get Henry back home like you do. I just want to make sure you don't stamp out the good in you to accomplish it."

His conscience was pricked by her words, but he was resolute in his plans. "Please don't worry. This is will be over and done with soon enough. If you don't mind picking up the braces yourself, I'll go ahead and make my way to the contact." She nodded in agreement. He pointed to the Northwest. "The blacksmith is not too far from here. Head in this direction until you see a tree with half of it's truck charred, there should a well worn path near there. Follow it until you see a grouchy old man. That's the blacksmith. He's not much for small talk, but if you tell him that you came in behalf of Rumpelstiltskin, he'll give you what you need. It should take too long, so I'll meet you back on the ship as soon as I finish my meeting."

"Alright, I'll see you later." She gave him a quick kiss on his lips.

"I love you Belle."

"I love you Rumpelstiltskin."

* * *

Once they were further out in their journey, Hook struck up a conversation with his partner. "I see things have gotten better with you two. It only took you a minute to get over your fight." He grinned at Regina, the playful look in his azure blue eyes made him seem more mischievous boy than rogue at the moment. "I think that's a new record."

"Our relationship is none of your business." Regina tried to come across as serious, but looking at the smile that seemed to be plastered on his face, she chooses not to give him a lecture about privacy. After all it was his kind suggestions that helped nudge her to reconciling with Fiona. She would've never have thought that this pirate had such insights into family. "You're right, things are improving. Thank you for asking."

"Wait, I must have misheard you, did you just say I was right?"

"Don't push it."

"Never, love." He calmly walked side by side with her, clearing branches that got in their way. "I'm just happy to see you and Fiona getting along."

"And why is that?"

"Pardon me?"

"Why are you so invested in our relationship?" She was a little suspicious of his motivations. Until he volunteered to take them to Neverland, she had only known the pirate to be self-serving. There was nothing to be gained by helping her and her daughter.

Hook internally debated between telling her the complete truth and telling her what she expected to hear from him.

"I never known you to be at a loss for words captain." Regina kept her eyes on him, hoping to get some clue about his intentions, either from his mouth or his behavior.

Taking the more cautious route, Hook told her. "What can I say, I just want to see you happy."

"I don't buy that." Hook always seemed to have some angle. Like her, he was quite adept at hiding his true intentions.

The captain placed his good hand above his heart in pretended to act wounded. "You think I have ulterior motives?"

"I know you do." She didn't know what it was quite yet, but she was determined to figure it out.

The dark haired man cocked his head to the side, looking at Regina with a new insight . "You don't believe that someone truly wants to see you happy."

Taken aback by his appraisal, she tried to defend herself. "I just don't trust you."

He knew she would never admit the vulnerability to his face. She had too much pride to let him win this she won't let her walls down, then maybe I should go first. Without any prompting from Regina, he shared with her. "My father and I were extremely close growing up, I practically worshiped him. When I was still a child, we boarded a ship to travel and have adventures. It seemed so perfect." He recalled how excited he was to be seeing the world with his old man.

His face dropped some at the next thought.

Regina was trying to get a read on the captain. He seemed to be having hard time finishing his story. "I take it that your adventures with him didn't end well?"

Jarred back, he started again. "Right, yes… l was happy, until the morning I discovered that he abandoned me."

"What happened?"

The captain's brow furrowed in anger. "He was a fugitive and he left to keep from being captured."

Though she had an idea of what the answer was, Regina still asked, "Did he ever come back?"

"No." He answered flatly.

"And your mother?"

Hook shrugged. He had no answer to give because he had no answer given to him, when he had asked his father.

While she appreciated hearing the personal story, Regina couldn't figure out its meaning."Why are you telling me this?"

He exhaled loudly in an attempt to release some of the anger and disappoint he felt from telling his tales. This wasn't about him, this was helping Regina. "I told you that if you wanted to gain your daughter's trust that you needed to be open with who you are." He chuckled to himself. "I'm just following my advice, love. I understand that telling this one story isn't going to suddenly change your opinion of me, but I want you to know me."

She was touched by the captain's courage to share something so sensitive with her. "I see." Regina didn't know what the appropriate response was in this situation.

Hook wasn't looking for some immediate reward, so her silence was acceptable, even welcomed. He didn't really want to rehash old memories. He just wanted to have a connection with her. The next words slid out of his mouth. "I truly want you to be happy."

* * *

Emma and Fiona were making some great progress. As they talked to the different vendors at the stalls in the village they managed to get most of the items on their that was left was some tears of fire and water from a secret lagoon the mermaids recuperated in. The latter was supposed to be in the hands of a local merchant, but the former was nowhere to be found. As it was getting close to midday, they went to a shack of a tavern to grab some food and drink. They were searching for an open table when Fiona heard something unexpected.

"Pipsqueak?!" The nickname made Fiona clench her jaw. The brunette recognized the voice even before she saw her face. It belong Elara, a former upperclassman at the martial academy that Fiona had attended as a young child. "I can't believe it's really you!" She was getting up from a table full of rowdy sailors to join her and Emma.

Emma quickly muttered under her breath. " Is she an old friend of yours?" Emma's eyes grew bigger as she tried to figure out if that woman was the same size of her father or if she was bigger.

Fiona scowled at the husky blond woman that was approaching. Most definitely not." She hated Elara as she had been bullied by her. Fiona was eternally grateful when the older girl finished her schooling and was assigned an apprenticeship. Or at least that's what she thought.

"Hey pipsqueak! You got stuck here in Neverland too?" The woman laughed. "Guess it serves you right. Always thought you better than us and now you're stranded here."

Fiona firmly pointed out. "I never said I was better than you."

"You didn't have to say a word. You just acted that way." She walked around to examine her former classmate. "And it looks like you still do."

"Whatever." She had no time to catch up and she had no interest in finding out how the woman got there. The less she talk to her the better. "I'm just here to have some lunch with my friend and then leave."

Elara noticed that Fiona was carrying a sword. "Good to see you're equipped, but do you know how to use it?" She said it loud enough that everyone in small establishment heard it.

Fearing that the woman was trying to instigate something, the brunette held up her hands."I'm not looking for trouble."

"Still a coward I see." The men from Elara's table laughed.

"I'm not a coward, I just don't see any reason to fight." She knew that starting a brawl with Elara would only end badly. The woman was so much bigger and stronger than her. If it came down to fists, Fiona had no doubt that she would lose. Seeing as the woman would only keep taunting them if they stayed to eat, Fiona started walking towards the exit, but the large woman blocked her path. "What if I give you a reason to fight? What if I told you I had what you needed to defeat Pan?" She took out a small bag that was tied to her belt and opened it just a bit so the orange glow could be seen. "These are the only tears of fire left in this part of the world."

"You want to fight over this?" Fiona asked incredulously.

"Actually I'd like a duel, but yes. If you win, you can have my bag."

"And what do you get if you win?" Worried that she wanted what they had already gotten.

"The duel is reward enough for me."

Emma was worried for her friend. "Do you think this is the smartest plan?"

"Do you have a better one?" Fiona shot back as they made they way outside.

* * *

As he got to the clearing Rumpelstiltskin called out. "Come out wherever you are!"

From behind a tree a teen aged boy with messy brown hair came to join him. "I can't believe you're here."

"It's good to see you again, Curly."

Brushing the stray lock of hair that fell in front of his face, the boy gave a barley there smile; everyone else called him Cubby. He sighed, this isn't how he wanted to see Rumple again. "You shouldn't have come." He appeared to fearful and nervous."Did you really think you could hide? He knows, you're here for the boy and he's going to stop you."

Rumple expected as much. "I'd be disappointed if Pan made it too easy."

The teen couldn't believe his ears."Pan has been following you since you came to this realm through the portal. He was amused by your attempts to get t the mainland with Hook's route. He even noticed that you picked up two passengers from the other land." He grabbed his old friend's arms. "He sees all, he knows all."

"No," Rumple corrected him, while brushing the boy's hand away from him. "He's not omnipotent, it's just an illusion he likes to keep up. He had spies who serve as his eyes and ears. Please don't insult me; I know how it 's not as powerful as he used to be."

"No, but he is more dangerous." Curly was getting more agitated. "Henry is important to his plans. He needs him and he won't let him go."

"He's desperate because he's losing his power." It didn't take a genius to figure the gist of Pan's goal.

"Yes and he's willing to take you down. You may have gained more abilities, but he can still beat you. If you challenge him, you will not only fail Rumple, you will die."

He smirked. "Perhaps, but between all my companions, I'm sure we can retrieve the boy and cause a lot of damage." That's all that mattered to him - preserving his beloved Bae's legacy by saving Henry. And he was willing to die for it.

The teenager acted as if he was seriously contemplating that particular scenario. "If all eight of you worked together, then yes. But that won't happen."

"And why not?" Rumple asked.

"Because he will break you down and pick you apart one by one." Bothered by his own words, he abruptly warned him. "You need to leave now."

"What is it?" It wasn't like Curly to be so withdrawn, so afraid. Something was wrong.

"I told you he knows everything." He started rubbing his hands together nervously. "He knew that I was meeting you here." He confessed.

"This is a trap?" Gold looked all around, expecting the other Lost Boys to come out of hiding and surround him.

"Yes, it is, but not for you."

Gold gasped. "Belle!"

* * *

After the captain shared his story and told her that he wanted her to be happy, Regina had a hard time looking at him in the eye. She wasn't used to see Hook so open with her (or anyone else). It was unsettling and at the same time she was inexplicably touched by the gesture.

Still, she was ill equipped to deal with this…. banter, manipulating others' feelings for her personal gain - those were things she was accustomed with dealing with men. Using them for what she needed and not worrying about the consequences.

Until now.

Now she was with a man who had nothing to really gain, but much to lose. Hook was here, in Neverland helping her and the others to get Henry back. Hook was here helping her reconnect with her daughter in a meaningful way. And for what? They was no really reward for his efforts.

"I truly want you to be happy."

Regina was trying to find proof that he didn't really mean it, but she wasn't coming up with anything substantial.

And so they handled most of their assignment with minimal conversation, both deep in thought and secretly wondering what the other was truly feeling.

Hook's skill with reading maps came in handy as he cracked a code to find some buried treasure. The chest was full of gold, but they were more interested in the cloak inside that granted its wearer the ability to hide in the shadows. It looked quite ordinary, a simple black piece with dull grey fasteners. They packed it up, along with some gold that Hook insisted they would need for future trades.

The two of them skipped taking a detour for lunch as they were both in no mood to eat. Hook was beginning to feel he had made a grave miscalculation with Regina. Maybe I misunderstood how she felt. Finding the silence becoming maddening, the captain finally tried to address the new chasm between them. "Regina, did I say something that offended you?"

Regina stopped in her tracks and gave him a hard glare as if he had asked the stupidest question on earth. "No."

"Then why have you've been keeping me at arm's length ever since this morning?" It stung him deeply to have her pull away just as he was opening his heart. He wasn't going to tell her that of course. "Why have you avoided saying anything more than the absolute minimum?"

Regina feigned ignorance, hoping that would get him to drop the subject. "I thought we were doing just fine captain. I'm sorry I haven't engaged you in small talk as I have others things on my mind. Like our mission."

"Please spare me the naive routine Regina. Obtuseness doesn't suit you love." He spat back.

Angered by the insult, she shot him a look.

"So now you're the one offended?" Hook scoffed at her reaction. He muttered, "I see why you have a such a hard tie communicating with Fiona."

"How dare you!" She stepped up to his face. "You have no right to criticize about how I handle my family."

"No, I have every right to Regina because I have been there, supporting you this whole time. And you know, a simple thank you would've been nice."

"You seemed to have forgotten that I said thank you this morning."

"You said thank you for my concern, not for my actions." There was a big difference between the two and he wasn't going to let that slide.

"Semantics. You knew what I meant."

For a few seconds they looked at one another, deciding what their next words were going to be.

Finally, Regina dropped her guard. "You're right. I haven't thanked you for…everything." She was grateful that he had been trying his best to help her. "I do appreciate-"

His soft and full lips pressed into surprisingly tender captain placed his arm and hook on the small of her back, pulling her closer to him. She didn't resist, part of it due to sheer shock at his presumptuousness and part of it was because she did in fact want it.

He pulled away so they faces were just inches away, where he could appreciate her beauty up close. "I love you Regina."

Startled at the open admission, the former queen for the first time in her life was utterly speechless.

He released Regina from his embrace. "Please say something."

Her eyes grew wide. "Regina?" He turned in the direction to see what she was looking at. A red-headed woman was running towards them. She started yelling their names. Regina started walking rapidly to meet her and as they got closer she saw it was Ariel.

"What's wrong?" Regina asked out loud.

The woman took a few seconds to catch her breath, putting her hands on her knees. "The Lost Boys know about our plan. They were waiting for me after I got the squid ink. I barely managed to escape, but I think you all are in danger. "

The color from Regina's face drained. Hook saw the fear in her eyes and knew exactly what she was afraid of - losing her daughter and never getting her son back. Taking charge of the situation, he reminded Regina, "she's in a village not far from here. Let's go now."

For the first time, Regina finds the captain's assertiveness comforting. It helped take her mind off her own negative thoughts and gave her something to do. The three of them started running to where the girls were supposed to be.


	26. Used

A small crowd formed, ready to be entertained by the duel between the large blond woman and her seemingly dainty opponent.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Emma asked Fiona again. "I mean we can look elsewhere or we can have one of the others get it from her."

The thought of asking her mother for help made Fiona cringe. "I don't think so Emma. This is my responsibility." She had pleaded Regina to get an assignment. She had expended all her humility; there was no way she'd come back without all the ingredients.

"Come one, pipsqueak, what are you waiting for?" Elara taunted from the opposite side of the circle. "Are you done getting prettied up?"

"I know I just met her, but I already hate her." Emma mumbled to her friend.

Fiona smirked. "Me too." She wasn't going to let Elara's verbal digs bother her. She pulled out her sword and shouted back, "I'm ready."

With just a couple of steps, the larger woman lunged at Fiona, pushing her sword towards the brunette's abdomen.

Hook's tutelage came in handy as Fiona pivoted her foot and easily dodged the strike.

She then attacked the surprised blond and cut her sword bearing arm. Immediately the woman retaliated by swinging her sword. It grazed Fiona's shirt, but she remained unharmed.

The former deputy then went ahead and cut Elara again, making an 'x' on the same arm. "Why don't we end this?"

Undeterred the woman charged again, Fiona was prepared; she whipped right by her and left her foot out. Elara tripped over it and crashed to the ground.

Fiona gave a smug smile, which infuriated Elara. She grabbed some dirt and threw it in her opponent's direction. The debris stung Fiona's eyes and she instinctively closed them.

The underhanded woman took advantage of Fiona's distraction. The swift and powerful blow to her gut knocked the air out of her. On her hands and knees, Fiona tried to catch her breath, but she was instead kicked by her foe. The sound in her ears and the pain emanating from her torso told her that quite a few of her ribs were broken at worst, cracked if she was lucky.

Emma had enough. "Stop!" She moved to break up the fight, but her arms were grabbed by two men from behind. "What do you think you're doing?!"

One of them sneered. "Letting Elara finish her fight."

"She cheated!"

The men laughed, finding it hilarious that Emma thought the fight was fair in the first place. "Calm down, it'll be over soon enough little one."

* * *

David and Snow were ambling back to The Jolly Roger, buoyed by Snow's clever trade for the enchanted shield.

"Remind me to have you around when we go to a yard sale." David's smile reflected some pride at his wife's negotiation skills.

Snow contemplated being back home in Storybrooke, with her family reunited.

"Catching his wife's unbridled joy, David asked. "Tell me, what were you just thinking?"

"It's silly, but I was thinking about going to garage sales to pick up things for our new place."

"New place?" He laughed. "We haven't even gotten home and you're already separating us from Emma and Henry?" His tone was playful. He knew even if they did get another place in town it would be near their daughter and grandson.

"Well, our place would be too small." She shrugged. "We can leave it for everyone else."

He raised his brow. "Too small?" It was certainly tight in their apartment, but they had managed to juggle everyone.

"Well, where would Fiona fit in?" She asked. "She'd want to stay in town, right?"

"Ah." He had a hard time believing that she would join them at the loft. She seemed more like a loner. "Perhaps she would want to stay at Regina's place."

Snow rolled her eyes. "I doubt that." She bit her lip, another thought taking over. "You may be right. She may not want to stay with any of us. Do you think she'll even want to stay?" She couldn't help, but worry that her sister was going to leave her again.

"The truth is we don't know what she wants, but it does no good to worry about something that hasn't happened yet. Why don't we get Henry back and then worry about the rest?" He tenderly held her in his arms.

"Of course. One problem at a time." Her anxiety didn't go away, but with David they seemed to subside.

Just then, they heard a woman scream and ran towards the source. Pushing through the vegetation, they made it to a clearing and found Gold standing over an injured Tamara.

He held the woman's heart in his hands.

"Please forgive me." She begged.

"No." He started squeezing the enchanted organ as the woman anguished on the ground.

* * *

The fight was quickly finishing up, with Elara appearing to be the victor. "You're too weak to defeat me."

Emma yelled. "Fine, you win. Just leave her alone!"

Elara shot a glare at the loud mouth. "I'll do as I want!" She then towering over her opponent to crow. "You always manage to get other people to pity you, don't you? When are you going to win your on fights?"

"How about now?." Fiona kicked her in the knee as hard as she could and when Elara fell, she managed to wrestle her and pull off the small bag with the fire tears inside. Quickly stuffing it inside her shirt, she tried to get up but was pulled back down. "You twerp! How dare you steal from me!"

Emma had enough; she bit one of the men and jerked away from the other as he was caught off guard. Running toward her friend, Emma balled her hands into fists, ready to attack.

Nauseous and light headed, the brunette saw her her surrounding shift. "Oh, no. Not again." She said before she blacked out.

* * *

David yelled. "Gold, don't!" The prince's holler had its intended effect and Rumpelstiltskin halted his torture long enough for David to reach him. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Giving Bae justice." The younger man held Gold's wrist. "Not like this. He wouldn't want you to do this." Gold paused at his words.

David slowly released his grip. "Please give me her heart." He pleaded and after a few moments, Gold relented and handed it to him.

Snow rushed over to Tamara, not over concern for the woman's safety, but from her desire to find her grandson. "Where's Henry?!"

"Last time I saw him, he was running in the dark jungle. I freed him when I found out Pan tricked us. He never wanted to destroy magic, he used us!" Her outrage was only tempered by the pain Gold had just inflicted on her moments earlier. "You have to believe me we had no idea what he was really planning."

Not swayed by her comment Gold ridiculed her blind faith. "Maybe you should've asked questions before abducting the boy to a land you had no knowledge of."

"Like I told you before, we didn't know."

"Ignorance is not an excuse."

"Enough!" Snow interrupted. "We are not hear to argue rehash the past." She looked at Tamara again. "Where's Greg?" She was afraid that the wayward man would harm Henry in a last ditch attempt to get back at Regina for what she had done.

"He's dead." Her voice is barely above a whisper. "Pan ripped his shadow off."

While there was no love lost over the cruel man's demise, Snow felt some sadness over the the vanity of Greg's life and death. He was a man who literally gave it all for revenge only to find out he was betrayed by the cause he so firmly believed in.

Gold, on the other hand, had no sympathy. "Glad to see that snake got what he deserved."

"Greg didn't deserve this! He only wanted to find his father, to get to the truth." Her tears flowed freely, but no one was moved by them. "He was a victim."

"No dearie, he is NOT a victim. He was a pawn." Thanks to his quest for the truth, he brought Pan's attention to Storybrooke. If hadn't opened his mouth, you would've never found my boy. So I hold him just as responsible as you for killing Bae.""

Tamara laughed at his naivety. "Greg wasn't the only person to lead us to Storybrooke. We had plenty of clues leading us to it. Even if he never came forward about the town, we would've used the our other contacts to get back."

Snow was alarmed by what was implied. Were their loved ones back in Maine still in danger? "What do you mean other contacts?"

* * *

"Are you okay?" Emma opened her eyes and saw a petite blond woman standing over her.

"What happened?"

The concerned woman replied, "I don't know. I found you and your friend here."

Remembering what happened before she blacked out, Emma rolled over and saw Fiona was still laying the hard ground, not moving. She got her her wobbly legs and went over to her aunt. Fearing the worst, she put her ear to the woman's chest and heard the steady beating of her heart. "Thank goodness." She mumbled to herself. She gently shook her friend. "Fiona, wake up."

The brunette opened her eyes, but didn't say a word.

"Fiona, say something."

"This is the worst hangover ever."

Emma laughed, "Yeah, I guess you can say that."

Focusing her eyes, the dazed brunette mumbled. "You're back to being you."

Emma felt her own face and looked at her hands. "You're right!" She sighed. "Thank goodness. I hated being a teenager again."

Fiona carefully sat up and gave her companion a weak smile. "I hear you. I already went through that in Storybrooke. Hated it then."

The stranger was confused by their banter. "Excuse what are you two talking about?"

Emma knew it would be too hard to explain everything so she just skipped on the long version. "Nothing."

Carefully getting to her feet, Fiona introduced herself. "Thank you for checking up on us. I'm Fiona and this is Emma. May I ask your name?"

"Tinkerbell."

* * *

Snow was losing her patience with Tamara. She bounded her by the wrists and repeated her question. "What other contacts do you have?"

"Even though Greg's account was an enormous help to us, for years we still couldn't get in with the curse being enacted. So we pursued other avenues to get in."

Gold surmised. "That's why you deceived my son - to get into Storybrooke."

"Yes, but I found out soon that Neal had no interest in returning. Fortunately we also had our eyes on Fiona and August as well. When August sought to get Emma to break the curse-"

Snow held up her hand. "Wait, what do you mean you had eyes on Fiona? How is she involved?"

Tamara gave a wicked smile. "We tailor our surveillance missions based on the person. I was assigned to Neal because his profile was suggested that he would open up to a loved one. August wasn't the one woman type so we just kept tabs from afar. Fiona was definitely someone who we deemed worthy of having a personal agent. We thought it would take a long time to gain her trust, but she just " She snapped her fingers. "Fell in love. She and Nick eloped within a few months of meeting."

" 're lying, she never said anything about being married."

"That's because he's dead. Ski accident. " Tamara bit her lip. "Not what we planned, but because of that tragedy we found out that she had magic. Used it to survive."

"You used my sister?" Snow didn't know what was making her more enraged - the pain her sister had gone through all those years or the fact that Tamara was so nonchalant of the manipulation involved. "How could you be so cruel?"

"We did what was necessary." Tamara said coolly. "Neal and Fiona were

Gold tensed up and moved to David, but the prince pulled Tamara's heart away. What he didn't expect was his wife plucking it from his hand and slamming on the ground.

The amoral woman collapsed on the ground.

* * *

Stunned by the sudden disappearance, Elara bellowed, "Where Fiona?!"

"I was about to ask the same thing dear." Regina pushed through the crowd. "Where's my daughter?"

Elara was confused by the question. She assumed the brunette was talking about Emma. "I did nothing to her. Emma was watching from the sidelines."

"No, not her. Fiona."

"No,you're not. Fiona's an orphan. Her parents died."

"Her adoptive ones may have, but I'm her birth mother."

"You're trying to trick me."

Regina waved her hands and ropes flew and wrapped themselves around the blond. "Does it look like I'm playing around?"

Frightened by the woman's power, she lied. "Nothing. She just vanished."

"And you had absolutely nothing to do with it?" Looking at the ground, she noticed some fire tears on the ground. "You're lying. She was here."

She tightened the ropes. "I'm going to ask you one more time - what did you do to my daughter?"

Barely able to speak, she answered the determined mother. "Pan asked me to delay her and we fought, but she and her friend somehow left. Perhaps it was magic."

At the mention of Pan, Hook stiffened. The captain knew Pan was crafty and preferred to play mind games over brute was surprised that he chose this woman to carry out this assignment. "Why did her want her delayed?"

"All he told me was she was ruining his game. He needed more time."

Hook pressed her for details. "And you simply obeyed him?"

"He said he'd let me return home if I did as he said.

I highly doubt that. "What does Pan want with her?"

"I honestly don't know."

Believing her, Regina loosened her grip and as the ropes eased off her, the blond gulped for air. "Thank you." She gasped.

"I didn't do it out of kindness. I need you alert enough to answer my questions."


End file.
